Through the Eyes of Ginny Weasley
by ArtemisIsis13
Summary: Shrouded in denial of the Ministry of Magic, Ginny Weasley is few who believe in the Dark Lord's return, and between learning her studies and hanging out with friends, she becomes part of the teenage resistance known as Dumbledore's Army. (Based on the last three books through Ginny Weasley's perspective.) [Former called "Life In The View of Ginny Weasley".]
1. Home for a While

**I do not own these characters. They are the property of J.K. Rowling, one of the most brilliant authors in the world.**

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><p><strong>Chapter One<strong>

**Home for a While**

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><p>None of us spoke on the journey.<p>

My brothers and my parents traveled in the muggle cars Dad had rented to take us home since my idiot brother and his best friend had lost our own Ford Anglia nearly three years ago at the beginning of my first year. I sat next to George, staring glumly out the window. None of us were happy, though Fred and George's spirits were oddly high considering You-Know-Who had returned and killed a fellow student. I pursed my lips at the thought, thinking back at the shocked and slightly indifferent face I had seen on Harry when we left him with his guardians, if that's what you could call them. I'd heard about the Dursleys; they were absolutely horrid.

"We're here," I heard Dad say softly.

I peeked out the window again and saw, with a slightly pleasure, The Burrow. This was my home and it had been all my life — that was until I went to Hogwarts which became a second home, though I always missed the Burrow when I left for school every September.

The muggle driver stopped the car out front and we got out, unloading our luggage and dragging ourselves toward the house. I smiled as I entered the familiar kitchen, the scent of mother's cooking in the air, even though she hadn't been cooking recently. I lugged my stuff up to my room with Ron and the twins right behind me. As soon as I was in my room, I dropped down everything and plopped myself down on my bed.

There were several thoughts running through my head that I had no clue what to pick and brood on. There was Harry and how I worried about him; You-Know-Who's return; what my life would be like now; why my twin brothers were acting upbeat; why Hermione had to be a know-it-all; why Michael asked me out; why the latter had to start with Hermione being a know-it-all...

Okay, I'll start with Michael. You see, last Christmas, I ran into Michael during the Yule Ball while Neville had given up on dancing (he preferred to sit and drink his butterbeer in apparent shame, though I really knew he had enjoyed himself, minus stepping on my feet). Michael was a fourth year Ravenclaw, fifth year from September. He was this tall, gangling guy with sleek black hair, fair skin, sky blue eyes, and a kind smile though at times he could be rather foolish.

Anyway, while I had gone to walk about a bit, I bumped into Michael and his date, Lisa Turpin. They had only attended as friends, so she didn't mind when Michael turned an interest at me. So had I since I wasn't really interested in him, but after that night, whenever he saw me he'd pull up a decent conversation. Months later, on the train ride to King's Cross, he had cornered me before I could find my friends and asked me if I wanted to be his girlfriend. Before that day, we had only flirted, maybe even 'dated' when we went on a Hogsmeade trip. I'd come to like him, but I wasn't all too sure that I should date him. Then I remembered that conversation with Ms. Know-It-All.

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><p>I searched through the shelves, looking for a book that would help me for my Herbology essay. I'd put it off long enough, thinking about how much I would love to fly a broomstick at that very moment. The sensation of flying was incredible; it relaxed my muscles, sharpened my focus, freed my mind of anything distracting or distressing. Sadly, I couldn't fly now, not when this essay was due tomorrow.<p>

"Hey, Ginny," I heard Hermione say from behind me. I turned around to see her submit a book to the shelf and pick out another. "What are you looking for?"

I explained to her the situation and she smiled at me, looking up and down the shelves.

"I know which book could help," she muttered. "Give me a second."

I almost took less than that. Hermione had the book I needed in her hands before I could blink. She smirked at my startled expression and gestured for me to sit while she went ahead to start whatever homework she had. I shrugged and joined her, opening up the book she had given me to scan through the table of contents.

"So, how are you? We haven't spoken lately," Hermione said softly, unrolling some parchment she had taken out of her bag.

I opened the book to the page I needed and sighed. "I'm fairly well," I replied as I started reading through the first page. "Fred and George are still planning out Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, even though they have absolutely no funds to continue the project. As for me, I'm just hanging out with my dorm mates most of the time. How are you?"

Hermione sighed. "Well, I'm not worse than wear but...I'm just worried. With this whole Tournament going on, I'm surprised that I can focus on anything other than Harry's safety sometimes. I'm just grateful that it's only one more task to go. Then all this publicity is over. I'm tired of that Skeeter woman — if you can call her that, she's more like a cow — writing all sorts of nonsense and lies about Harry and me. We're just friends, siblings really..."

"Yeah, that stuff is flying all over," I said, my thoughts momentarily distracted at the thought of flying. "I hope Harry's doing alright. How is he?"

"Why don't you ask him?" Hermione asked as she scribbled down her name and heading on the parchment. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

I blushed. The prospect of talking to Harry seemed like a distant dream. I just kept losing my head at the sight of him.

"Um, no thanks, I don't want to bother him," I mumbled, shaking my head.

Hermione's quill hovered over her parchment as she paused to look at me. I recognized that look on her face, like she was calculating something that might be a challenge to crack, but she would be willing to take up to torch and give it a shot. It was a look that said instantly that she knew exactly why I wouldn't talk to Harry.

"You still like him?"

I blinked, blushing harder than before. Was I really that obvious? Or was she just good at figuring these things out.

"Yes, I do," I muttered while trying to read over the chapter for my essay. "But I think he likes Cho Chang."

Hermione sighed. "He does."

I pouted sadly. Cho Chang was a fifth year Ravenclaw student, Chaser for her house's team, and a very pretty Asian girl. I didn't know that much about her, other than the fact that Harry seemed to like her. I didn't really have anything against her, but I hated the fact that she seemed to have his attention. I knew I was being ridiculous about it. I mean, why did I think he could like me when all I was to him was 'Ron's little sister'. By that standard, even He might have viewed _me_ as a sister.

"I think I should just give up, Hermione," I confessed as I rested the book on the table. "I don't even understand why I'm hoping... he's falling in love with a smart and pretty girl... I can't compete with that even if I tried.

"Don't sell yourself short, Ginny," Hermione chided me. "You ARE a smart, powerful and beautiful young girl. You just don't show it often. Trust me, if you relaxed more around him and believe in your own confidence, he'd notice. And if he doesn't, it wouldn't matter. Your life doesn't have to revolve around a boy."

She made herself a point. I did often act shy around him. That's why he never took much notice to me. I gave him no reason to.

"I just don't know how to do that, Hermione," I sighed. "Some Gryffindor I am if I'm not brave enough..."

"Ginny, you're braver that you believe," Hermione said sternly. "Some guys are simply blind to a girl who likes them. I mean, they can be obtuse and not notice the little things. That doesn't mean the girl has to go sit in the corner and cry about it."

I wanted to smile. "Why do I have the feeling we're not talking about me anymore," I asked playfully.

Hermione blushed. "That's not the point," she said, trying to change the subject. "But you know, to build up your confidence, you could talk more around him or... Go out with another guy; not to get Harry's attention, but to show yourself that you have options on a dating level. It's not like you'd be marrying any of them after the first date. Ginny, you're young; we both are. But loosen up a little. Be the _Feisty Ginny Weasley_ I know you are. I've seen it after all."

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><p>So I had decided to follow up on her advice. When Michael asked, I only hesitated for a brief second before saying, "Yes." He only kissed me on the cheek afterwards. Of course it was too soon for lip-locks, and I was wasn't sure I was ready for that yet.<p>

So now I was at home, thinking about this for a few hours. Dinner that night was quiet. Ron, who usually had the biggest appetite, wasn't eating his usually large share. Fred and George didn't make any jokes or hilarious remarks as they ate. Neither did I. Mum and Dad both seemed subdued in something secret, and I was left to ponder what on earth could be going on now. After dinner, we all went to get ready for bed. For the next week we all relapsed into our old facades though something was off between our parents. They had both joined a group by Dumbledore, but they hadn't told us what it was. All that we knew was that it was majorly important.

"Children, your mother and I have some news," Dad said that bright Sunday morning during breakfast.

Fred froze in the movement of shoving his fork of eggs into his mouth. He stared at Dad warily and said, "Please tell me we're not getting another sibling. Because the last time you said that, we got stuck with Ronniekins over here."

He pointed at Ron whose mouth was so stuffed with food that he couldn't retort. Dad turned pink around the ears and I stifled a giggle, kicking Fred in the shins instead. George sniggered behind his slice of toast.

"No, Fred, that's not it," Dad said, his ears turning from pink to red. "We're leaving the Burrow for the rest of the summer."

Silence.

Ron, Fred, George, and I stared at our father in shock. We were leaving the Burrow for the rest of the summer? I tried to see if Dad was joking about this, but there was no humor in his face. He wasn't joking at all, and we could all tell. He was serious about what he was telling us. I just couldn't understand why. I had just come home after all.

"But, why?" George asked, dropping his half-eaten toast onto his plate. "We've only been home a week."

"I'm sorry, but I can't explain it to you all here," Dad said sadly. "It's something Dumbledore wants us to do. To ensure that we are safer. Your mother is in agreement with it."

"Why can't you tell us?" I demanded. "Where are we going?"

"I will tell you all soon," Dad promised, his eyes pleading with us to understand. "We're staying with a friend."

"What friend?" Ron demanded through his mouthful of food.

Dad hesitated, staring at all of us one by one. Then he leaned forward like he was afraid the walls would hear him. "Sirius," Dad whispered. "We're going to stay with Sirius at his parents home."

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><p><strong>Okay, this is a new one I'm starting. I'm having a small writer's block for "The Burrow" though I really want to write it out. It'll be a little while before I'll upload the next chapter for that one. For now, I'm writing this one and I'd love to know what you think about it. It's supposed to be written in Ginny's perspective for the next three books.<strong>

**So please review. I'd love to hear your opinion.**

**~ArtemisIsis13 **


	2. Pompous Percy Peeved

**I do not own these characters. They are the property of J.K. Rowling, one of the most brilliant authors in the world.**

** This is an immediate continuation from the last chapter. So enjoy! :)**

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><p><strong>Chapter Two<strong>

**Pompous Percy Peeved**

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><p>We all stared at Dad in shock.<p>

Only recently had we all learned from Ron and Hermione that Sirius Black, known wizard-worldwide as a notorious mass-murderer, was actually innocent, having been framed by his former school friend, Peter Pettigrew. It was a real shock to discover that Ron and Hermione had known about it all this time and that they had helped him escape custody in my second year. To add to that, he was Harry's godfather. Other than that, we didn't know that much about what happened with Sirius. Now to be told that we were going to be living with him...

"Really?" Ron asked, his confusion turning into excitement. I still hadn't completely digested the fact that Sirius was innocent, so that was a little strange to me. "I didn't know that he even had a place."

"It's his family home," Dad said softly. "His parents are both dead, so he has it by inheritance. We're leaving tomorrow. I got a letter from Dumbledore last night telling us where to go."

"But, Dad," I said. "We can't just leave. I just settled in."

Dad sighed and patted my hand. "I know, Sweetheart, but things have changed now. It's for the best that we leave. Please try to understand."

The infuriating thing for me was that I _did_ understand. That didn't mean I liked it. Fred and George were still staring at Dad, probably trying to accept that they were going to live with a former murderer or something along those lines. Ron on the other hand nodded. Of course, he did. He already knew and liked Sirius. I'd never met the man in my life.

"It'll be fine, Ginny," Dad said softly. "We'll all work it out. We can ask Hermione's parents if they'd let her come. And Bill will be there to help out."

That caught my attention. "Bill? But I thought he was going back to Egypt."

"He was," Dad said. "But he's decided to stay home with us."

Despite my disappointment and anger, that lifted my spirits. Of all my brothers, Bill was my favorite, the twins tying for second favorite. I'd seen him a few days before school was over and I'd been saddened to know he would be returning to his work in Egypt. Now to learn that I would see him again this summer had me more optimistic by a small degree.

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><p>After breakfast, Dad went to work while Mom started packing, ordering us to do so too. We decided to start in at least an hour so the twins and I followed Ron up to his room, something he was rather startled about.<p>

"Why are you guys following me?" he asked.

"We want to talk to you, of course," George said cheerfully.

Ron looked like he didn't believe us as he entered his room with us not too far behind. It was a mess in here. His truck was wide open and his school books were strewn all over the floor. His robes were hanging over the side of his bed and there were candy wrappers on his pillow. By the window, Pigwidgeon hooted happily and fluttered around his cage eagerly, zooming like a comet in circles. Ron's grimy window was open so that cool air filtered in.

"If Mum were to to come in here, you'd be dead," I commented as I went to sit on the camp bed that my parents had added for Harry's use. The thought that he slept on it made me uneasy for some reason, but I sat there anyway. Fred and George sat next to me, staring at Ron. He stared back.

"What is it?" he asked, pushing his robes off his bed.

"Sirius Black," I said. "We still don't know that much about him other than that he is innocent. And we feel a bit uncomfortable going to live with him."

"But Sirius is a great guy," Ron protested. "What's so uncomfortable about it?"

"Well, for starters, we've all only known him as a murderer that escaped from Azkaban," George said quietly. "You actually know the truth. We want to know too."

"Oh," Ron said slowly. "Okay then. I'm sure he wouldn't mind. You'd find out anyway." Ron was about to start talking when he stopped. He looked at the window suspiciously and then he went to close it, pulling the curtains shut in the process.

"What was that for?" Fred asked.

"Sirius's secret is very important," Ron said. "Without Pettigrew, we can't prove his innocence, but there's a part of the story that can get him sent to prison. I can't let that happen. Harry would kill me."

Ron sounded dead serious. Fred and George looked like they wanted to make a joke but I glared at them to hold their tongues. I'd seen Ron like this before. He wore this grim expression when he, Hermione and Harry spoke of something extremely important.

"We won't tell a soul," I promised.

Ron started the story and the three of us listened with rapt attention. He told us how Sirius had been friends with our former professor, Remus Lupin, Harry's father James, and Peter Pettigrew. He explained that when the friends discovered that Lupin was a werewolf that they became Animagi to help him through his transformations. You should've seen Fred and George's faces when they discovered that Sirius was Padfoot, one of the Marauders. I could tell that the minute they discovered that that their doubt about Sirius had started to dissolve. The Marauders were their heroes.

Of course, they were disgusted with what Wormtail a.k.a Pettigrew did to his friends. We all sympathized Sirius having to suffer thirteen years of imprisonment for something he didn't do. To further disgust us, we couldn't belief that we had harbored Pettigrew all these years when he was in rat form, Scabbers. Whatever sympathy I had had for that rat before was gone. Permanently.

Of course, we all enjoyed hearing Sirius's escape. There was longing in Ron's voice, indicating that he had wanted to go along with these adventures but due to being unconscious, he had to relay to us what Harry and Hermione had told him. I made a mental note to ask Hermione about it later. When he was done, the room was silent. The twins were nearly jumping in their seats, maybe out of excitement to see Sirius now. I'll admit it, he sounded pretty cool. I was still unsure of him, but I guess I would have to meet him first to put to rest any judgment against him.

"Where has he been all this time then?" I asked. "You said he was still in contact with Harry, but wouldn't he be seen?"

"Nah," Ron said, waving his hand. "When he's in public, he's in his Animagus form so people don't suspect anything. I have no clue where he stayed besides the cave, but I think it was with Lupin. They are best friends after all. Practically family."

Suddenly, a lot noise issued downstairs. Then I heard enraged yelling.

"What in the name of Merlin?" Fred gasped as we all raced to the door, nearly fighting to be the first one through. We all scrabbled down the stairs, Ron nearly bowling us over when he tripped, but we all made it down alive. Naturally the yelling was louder now. It surprised me who was yelling. Usually it was Mum who yelled, but this wasn't Mum.

It was Dad. And he was yelling at Percy.

"WHY CAN'T YOU AT LEAST CONGRATULATE ME, FATHER?" I heard Percy yell. "THIS IS RATHER IMPORTANT TO ME! OR ARE YOU IMPLYING THAT I DON'T HAVE THE ADEQUATE SKILL TO CARRY ON THIS JOB?"

"I NEVER SAID ANYTHING OF THE SORT!" I heard Dad yell back. "BUT YOU MUST SEE WHAT THEY'RE DOING HERE!"

"YOU'RE TOO BLIND TO SEE THAT I'M WORTH A HIGHER RANK THAN YOU!" Percy roared. I gasped and raced into the room with my other brothers right behind me.

There were four people in the kitchen: Mum, Dad, Percy, and Bill. Percy was standing in front of the doorway while Mum stood between them, her eyes filled with tears as she tried to convince them to stop yelling. Bill stood next to her, his wand out, trying his best to calm Percy.

"Perce, don't be like that," he pleaded. "Let's just sit down and talk about this! There's no need to fight!"

"Don't give me that nonsense, William!" Percy spat. Bill flinched at being addressed by his full first name with such venom. "I know you're taking Father's side on this! The Ministry is doing all it can to help the Wizarding World and you have the nerve to tell me they're backwards? I thought you were more sensible that than!"

"I am," Bill said, trying to keep his voice calm. "Listen to me, Percy, it's not that we don't believe that you are incapable of taking that job for the Minister, but given your current reputation, it only comes as a shock."

"And why should that be?" Percy asked heatedly. "I have given my job full attention and gone through everything I can to ensure that I don't fail and any of my duties. The Minister clearly saw the hard-working person that I am! I would appreciate it that you show some support!"

"Dear, that's not what your brother is trying to say," Mum said tearfully, stepping forward to pat his hair.

"No? Then why are you all trying to force me to believe that the Minister is manipulating me?" Percy demanded. I raised at eyebrow and exchanged startled glances with Ron. "It's not my fault that Dumbledore's gone around the bend—"

"Excuse me?" Fred burst out, his eyes wide. "What did you say about Dumbledore?"

The four of them turned and found us standing in the hallway, staring at them in shock. Percy took a step back, gaping at us as if we popped out of thin air. It would have been funny if we actually knew how — well the twins knew how, but not Ron and me — but given that this wasn't a laughing matter, it wasn't funny at all.

"Children, go back upstairs," Dad said, trying to suppress his anger towards us. His face was as red as his hair and his glasses were nearly hanging off his nose.

"No way," George protested. "What is going on here?"

Bill sighed. "Percy's got a promotion. He's working as Minister Fudge's Junior Assistant."

I gaped at him. "What? When did that happen?"

"Yesterday," Percy said, puffing his chest out proudly. "I find it quite remarkable that I already have such a high position. I came here to tell you all, but then Father jumped down my throat about it." He turned to glare at Dad. "And you're wrong. The Minister is not using me as a spy!"

"Percy, use your common sense!" Dad snapped. "I know you are more that capable of having such and important job, but don't you find it a bit fishy that you're only gotten the job so soon? Given what happen in your service to Crouch—"

"Thats is behind me, Father," Percy said pompously. "It was a mistake in believing so highly of a mad man like Bartemius Crouch. I have seen the error of my ways in that department. I'm off to do better, more useful and important work with my life. Do you know how hard it is to be respected or taken seriously in the Ministry when everyone knows that you're my father? You've taint our family name with your ridiculous muggle obsessions! It's time to move forward from all this nonsense!"

"Watch what you're calling nonsense!" Ron shouted, his face turning red like Dad.

"Don't defend him, Ronald!" Percy snapped. "Surely you've seen it as well! Living in his lifestyle is destroying any chance I have to succeed! All with his muggle projects or his low job aspirations, or with all the lack of money we've ever had—"

"Now listen here, young man," Bill said heatedly, gripping his wand more tightly in his hand. I myself no longer cared about underage restrictions; I wanted to pull out my wand and hex Percy myself. How dare he say such awful things about his own family! "Dad does the best he can for all of us because he loves us! Don't you dare blame his income on his position. Don't you understand what a noble person he is? It isn't all about money!"

"I never said that!" Percy snapped, jutting his chin out haughtily. "I know what kind of person my father is! He'd do much better in life if he'd give up on all his pointless obsessions and do something more worthwhile like myself! Hanging around Dumbledore? That's going to drive you all down further! Haven't you realized how daft that man had gone? You'd do better to just stay clear of him!"

"How can you say that?" the twins yelled. "Dumbledore's a great wizard!"

"He WAS a great wizard," Percy 'corrected' them in that pompous voice. "But as we all know, with his supposed beliefs that You-Know-You has returned is beyond—"

"Shut up!" I said loudly, glaring at him. All eyes turned to me.

"What did you just say?" he asked, his voice startled.

"I said 'shut up', you pompous prat!" I snapped, marching over to him. I was probably the smallest person in the room, but I had inherited my mother's temper. Percy backed away at my furious glare. "I can't believe you! After everything we've all endured you're just going to waltz in and try to change us? There's nothing wrong with Dad's love for muggles! So what if he doesn't get a large pay at work! His love is unlimited and worth so much more! How dare you insult him! How dare you insult _us_! We're your family, Percy! What has gotten into you?"

Everyone stared at me but I didn't care. The was Percy was behaving was far beyond arrogant and pompous. He was being a complete arse! (Thank goodness that Mum can't hear what goes on in my head.)

"So far, none of you are treating me like family," he said evenly, fury sparking in his blue eyes behind his glasses. "You all tease and humiliate me in front of my peers and co-workers. The Ministry shows me far more respect and courtesy that what I find here. I only tell you this. I'm just trying to help you. With your hanging around Dumbledore, your going to be marked as traitors. I know we're all better than that. All with the trouble Potter's making—"

"Harry isn't making an trouble," Ron said, his voice shaking with anger. "And why is all of a sudden that you're calling him 'Potter'?"

"Ronald, it time that you see that Potter's not who you think he is," Percy said. "Look at what he and Dumbledore are doing — spreading lies about You-Know-Who! The Ministry is trying to bring peace to the community and let them know that all is well—"

"'All is well?' Are you bloody mad?" Ron yelled. "Harry's my best friend — practically my brother! You've lived with him for Merlin's sake! You know the kind of person he is! Why are you siding with the Ministry?"

"I work for Mr. Fudge now Ron, my loyalty is demanded and I am willing to give it!" Percy said. I took a step away from him and accidentally backed into the twins who caught me before I fell. "It's best that you know what side your on, because if your against the Ministry, then you are against me. Siding with Dumbledore and Potter is going to land you in the mud. Don't be an idiot and just see reason here. Dumbledore will go down and drag you all with him if you stay with him."

The room was so silent that I couldn't even hear my own heartbeat. We all stared at Percy with disbelief and horror. Who on earth was this person standing in front of me? He looked like Percy, spoke with his dialect and haughtiness, but... This a completely different person.

I had always known he was ambitious. I had thought he was intelligent as well. Yet here he was, saying the most awful and untrue words about Dumbledore, dragging Harry into it, and to top it off, insulting our father — thus insulting the rest of us. I looked around and saw Bill standing in front of Mum and Dad, shaking with rage. Mum was crying, trying to move towards Percy but Dad held her back, his skin so red you'd have thought he painted it that way. Fred and George looked disgusted. Ron, infuriated. I knew exactly how all of them felt because I felt the same way too. This wasn't our Percy anymore. This was a stranger.

"Then we're against you," I said softly. Everyone looked at me. "We all know the truth, Percy. And Dumbledore has it right, not the Ministry. We all stand by his side, as well as Harry's. If you have a problem with that, then go drown yourself."

"Ginny!" Mum nearly shrieked, but I didn't care. The twins and Ron were nodding in agreement. Bill was staring at me like he'd never seen me before. So was Dad.

Percy had gone white. His mouth opened and closed like a fish as he tried to speak. "Is that your choice then?"

I was trembling now, unsure of whether to scream or cry, but then Dad took the ball from me.

"Yes, it is," he said.

The tension in the room stood at breaking point. Percy stared at us one by one, his shocked face turning smooth and indifferent. Then he looked around the house like he'd never seen it before. And I knew it then that we'd lost him.

"Very well then," Percy said crisply. "I refuse to live among those who choose to ride down the road of insanity. I'm leaving the Burrow."

If this was any greater news than what he had said to us before, none of us besides Mum showed it. She looked ready to collapse. Percy moved passed us up to his room where I was sure he was going to pack everything he owned.

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><p>I folded the last on my clothes and dropped them into my truck with my books. I sniffled as I closed the trunk, trying not to cry again. What had happened four hours ago almost seemed like a dream. Percy had packed his bags up with all his belongings. I stayed in the kitchen with everyone else as Mum tried to reason with Percy, but to no avail. He had left her, had left all of us without even a goodbye. No one really spoke afterwards though the twins did come up to me with a comforting hug, saying softly so Mum couldn't hear that they were proud of me.<p>

Eventually I returned to my room to pack where, after sorting what I was going to take with me, I sat down on my bed and burst into tears. Percy may not have been my favorite brother, but still, he was my brother. To have heard him say what he had to us, well, I didn't regret what I had said to him. I just wished it hadn't been necessary. I wiped my eyes and runny nose. Crying was going to get me nowhere, even though it relieved some of the pain. I had learned that when I was taken by Riddle to the Chamber of Secrets. I had to be strong, especially in the coming times. I couldn't be iron, but I would be as strong as I had to be. My parents and brothers needed me as much as I needed them. I couldn't dwell on Percy's betrayal forever.

Dragging my trunk downstairs I saw my remaining brothers and my parents around the table, holding a saucer. A portkey.

"Grab on, Ginny, quick!" Bill said. I hurried forward and caught hold of a small portion of the plate. For a moment nothing happened. Then I felt a tug and we were all sucked into a whirl of color. It felt like a minute before we stopped in what looked like a muggle neighborhood.

"Where are we?" Fred asked.

Dad reached into his pocket and pulled out a slip of parchment and gave it to each of my brothers to read. One by one they all read it and turned to look at something in shock. I couldn't see what it was. They were looking in between two houses, Eleven and Thirteen.

"Here, Ginny," Dad said, giving me the parchment. It read '_The Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix may be found at number twelve, Grimmauld Place, London_.'

"What's—" I was about to say when suddenly, a large house grew in between Number Eleven and Thirteen. I gasp and bumped into Ron.

"Welcome to our summer home," Dad said grimly. "Come, let's meet Sirius."

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><p><strong>Well, here's the second chapter. I hope I didn't overdo anything on Ginny's part with Percy. I really didn't like Percy after reading the OoTP but he got some redemption after DH, but I'm not going to put him in a bright light here. I really thought he was being a jerk around here so I tried to write him that way.<strong>

**Please review and give your opinion. :) :)**

**~ArtemisIsis13**


	3. Grimmauld Place

**These characters are the property of J.K. Rowling.**

**Thank you all for the previous reviews. I hope you enjoy this one. I have quite a bit of school work to deal with, but I'll write whenever I can. I'm hoping to update at least once a week at most. Twice and over if I'm next week I"m on holiday from Friday to Wednesday, so I'll see what I can write.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Three<strong>

**Grimmauld Place**

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><p>We didn't have time to inspect our surroundings better because Dad ushered us toward the house.<p>

We all quickly walked up to the front door but as Mum reached out her hand to knock, Dad turned around and said, "Be aware not to make too much noise in there. And be careful where you go. The Order is still cleaning up in there. Apparently, Sirius's parents went to great extremes in protecting their belongings and most valuable possessions. Just keep calm and follow me. It'll be alright."

I was already upset about Percy. I didn't need Dad to add further worry onto my conscious. I could tell Ron thought along similar lines with me just from the expression on his face. Mum knocked quietly on the door when suddenly we heard a muffled screaming from the other side.

"FILTH! SCUM! BY-PRODUCTS OF DIRT AND VILENESS! HALF-BREEDS, MUTANTS, FREAKS, BEGONE FROM THIS PLACE! HOW DARE YOU BEFOUL THE HOUSE OF MY FATHERS—" a woman screeched at the top of her lungs. I looked around the street but no one came out to inspect the noise. There must have been charms to prevent muggles from doing so.

"SHUT UP, YOU DREADFUL AND INSOLENT HAG! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR BULL—" A man roared from behind the door.

"Sirius, mind you language!" A different man yelled.

"SORRY!" Sirius yelled back. I gulped. Sirius didn't seem to be in a good mood.

"Ugh, I forgot about that portrait," Mum said, shaking her head in embarrassment.

"It's alright, dear," Dad sighed.

The door opened just as the screaming stopped and standing on the threshold was none other than my ex-professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts, Remus Lupin.

"Ah, Remus, dear," Mum said, smiling weakly at him. "I'm so sorry. I forgot about the portrait, I didn't mean—"

"It's alright, Molly," Lupin said softly. "Come in."

Lupin stood back to allow us passed the threshold. It was dark in there. A few candles were lit. Looking around, I saw a clear inch of dust and cobwebs hanging from the ceiling and icing the walls. I looked up a tall staircase and gagged; there were house-elf heads mounted on the walls.

"Where are we?" I whispered, horrified.

"Grimmauld Place," Lupin said quietly, eyeing a portrait on the wall. "Please, let's go to the kitchen. It's safer to talk there."

"Agreed," Bill muttered, leading our way towards the kitchen. "Leave your trucks in the hall."

We obeyed him, me somewhat reluctantly, and then followed him down the hall. He warned us not to knock over a troll-leg umbrella stand which I found rather gross. He opened a door and led us into a spacious but dusty kitchen. There were cleaning supplies on the dining table. Standing next to the table was none other than—

"Sirius!" Ron said joyfully, bounding forward to shake his hand. Sirius grinned at Ron.

"Hello, Ron," he said, grasping my brother's hand. "It's good to see you again. How are you?"

"A bit upset," Ron scowled. "Did you hear about Percy?"

Sirius nodded, his expression grim. I remembered seeing that face on the front page of the _Daily Prophet_ years ago. He had looked so terrifying with those sunken grey eyes, long, dirty hair, and thin, waxy face. He could have a vampire for all I knew. But he looked different now. His face was fuller and softer, his hair was shoulder-length and his eyes were full of life though there were dark circles underneath. He no longer looked like a prisoner. He could pass for a normal man.

"Yes, I did," Sirius said, patting Ron's back sympathetically. "I know what it's like to have family turn their back on you. Shun you for your beliefs and attitudes. It's a pointless bother, I know."

Ron smiled at him. Sirius turned his eyes on the rest of us.

"Hello, Molly, Arthur, Bill," he said, giving each of them a smile. Then he looked at me and the twins. "These must be the rest of your children, minus Charlie."

"Yes," Dad said. He looked at us. "Well, go on."

The twins and I exchanged nervous/eager glances before the twins stepped forward.

"Is it true that you're Padfoot?" George asked excitedly.

Sirius smiled at him. "Yes, I am."

The twins laughed in delight. "It's a pleasure to meet you then," Fred said, holding out his hand. "I'm Fred, this is my brother George. We had your old map at school!"

"We learned so much from you guys!" George added, grinning as he and Fred shook both of Sirius's hands. Lupin stood in the background, shaking with silent laughter. Sirius laughed as well, amusement filling his grey eyes.

"Pleasure to meet you too," he smirked. The twins released his hand and stared at him in awe. I rolled my eyes at them. Of course it was natural for them to do this; they had just met one of their heroes.

"Come on, little sister," Fred said, turning to me. My head snapped up as I saw Sirius turn his attention to me.

"Oh," I said lamely. "I — um — I'm Ginny," I said, holding out my hand to him.

"Ginny? Ah, yes, the _Little Wildfire_ Bill told me about," Sirius smirked. I threw a glare at Bill who raised his hands in defense. "I'm honored to meet you."

"Sirius, your pleasantries are frightening," I heard Lupin chuckle. "Trying to make a good impression?"

"Oh, shut it, Moony," Sirius said, his pale cheekbones turning light pink.

I giggled. Sirius didn't seem bad at all. On the contrary, it looked like he had a good sense of humor. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to be here.

Then I remembered what it had looked like out in the hallway.

"This is Grimmauld Place," I said, not as a question, but as a statement.

Sirius's smile morphed into a scowl. "Ah, yes, you saw what it's like outside. After my mother died, the condition of this house suffered greatly. The blasted house-elf couldn't even do his job properly."

"You have a house-elf?" I asked. He nodded. "Yes, his name's Kreacher. And he's pitiful. Takes a habit to insulting everyone who walks passed."

"What about the house-elf heads?"

Sirius's lips twitched bitterly. "Ah, yes," he muttered, his once cheery voice tinged with hatred. "I may have been a Gryffindor but my family was made up of Slytherin purebloods only. They felt they were all royalty and let the world know it. With the house-elves...those little creatures served us willing and when their time was up — well, you saw them. It's a tradition for my family." He scowled. "Bloody idiots," I heard him mutter under his breath.

I gulped involuntarily. My family, as well as Lupin and Sirius, looked disgusted. If Hermione were here, she'd have a raging fit about SPEW that would cause the next Apocalypse. (Don't think I'm over-exaggerating, because there is a good chance it's true).

"Anyways, I'm cleaning out this house," Sirius continued. "Anything dark and dangerous go out the door, though Kreacher is making it difficult; he doesn't want to get rid of anything. I hate coming back here; it reminds me of why I left... Actually, it _is_ why I left, along with who I was related too..."

"Come now, Sirius," Lupin said. "It'll get better."

"I hope you're right," Sirius grumbled as he walked towards the cleaning supplies. "It's filthy here. What in the name of Merlin has that elf been doing around here?"

Lupin sighed. "I know, Sirius, I know." He looked at me. "Dumbledore thought it would be best to keep us all here for the rest of the summer as a source of protection. With everything that has happened, it's not best for you all to stay in the open. We do apologize for taking you away from your home. It was necessary."

"The Ministry is keeping an eye on Dad too, thus, all of us," Bill said, nodding. "I'm taking a desk job at Gringotts, though I'll miss Egypt."

"I'm sure there are a few upsides," Sirius said playfully though his grim expression was still present on his face. Bill blushed.

Lupin rolled his eyes and pulled out his wand, conjuring two glass on the table. I glanced at Mum and Dad. They were in the corner, talking quietly, but Bill got my attention.

"I'll take you guys to your rooms," he said. "We'll be right back."

Lupin, Sirius and my parents nodded to Bill. I had a feeling that Bill just wanted us out of the kitchen for a while; maybe to let the adults talk privately. They did seem to have an agitated air around them, so I decided not to argue with Bill.

I nodded as I followed my brothers out of the kitchen. This place made me uncomfortable and aggravated. Who on earth could ever live in such a place? It was the muggle version of a haunted house (and yes, I learned about those from Dad). I restrained myself from looking at the elf heads as I collected and lugged my trunk up the stairs. Bill showed Ron his room, reassuring him that it had been cleaned out already. He then took the twins and me to our separate rooms. Fred and George seemed pleased with their room. As I looked at mine, I thought it was both grand and pathetic at once.

Not that it was hideous or anything like that, but the walls were black with green vines painted in an elegant spiral pattern. The floor was dark wood; the ceiling was silver with cobwebs. There were two beds in here. There was one by a window while the other was nearer the door. I pulled my trunk up to the window and looked outside. There were muggles walking on the sidewalk, but if they saw this house, they took no notice of it. That's what confirmed to me that they couldn't see it at all. I sat down on the bed; it was very soft. I couldn't help be feel uncomfortable here. This room was grand, but it reeked of pureblood pride and arrogance. I hated that.

I laid down on the bed just as my stomach started to rumble. I hadn't eaten before I'd left the Burrow. I wondered if we'd be having dinner soon because I didn't think this place could house food, but then I remembered that Mum was here; she'd never let us starve, especially her hunger-raved Ron. I snorted at the thought.

There was a soft knock on my door and a moment later, Ron poked his head in hesitantly.

"Hey, Ron," I said, sitting up. "What is it?"

Ron stepped into my room and closed the door softly. "Well, nothing much really," he muttered. "My room is sort of...depressing." He looked around my room. "Like this one."

"Thanks," I said sarcastically.

Ron came to sit on my bed. "So, what'd you think of Sirius?"

I shrugged. "He seems pretty cool. I like his sense of humor."

Ron grinned. "It'll work out, Gin, I know it will. Sirius is a great guy to hang out with."

I smiled at him. "I know, I guess," I said. "It's just a tad hard to completely break down the wall I had towards him."

Ron rolled his eyes at me. "Mum wants us down in a few minutes. Bill got us stuff to eat so we don't starve here." Just as he said it, his stomach rumbled louder than mine.

"Wow," I said, smirking. "I better get there faster than you. Next thing we know, I starve from food deprivation."

"What?" Ron asked, confused. Smirking wider, I raced to the door. It didn't take a genius to figure out that he was right behind me.

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><p>The first few days into the week were awful.<p>

To start it off, we spent most of the time cleaning. Grimmauld Place was the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix, a society created by Dumbledore himself to fight You-Know-Who. Mum wanted the house to look presentable for our future guests who would turn up by the end of the week for their first official meeting. That meant that my brothers and I worked our fingers to the bone, along with Sirius and Remus, to clean out the house.

We started small, if that's what you could call it. Ron and I went to the top floors and started using special brooms Mum had given us to sweep out the dusty stairs and carpets. After the first twenty minutes, and a lot of coughing, Mum had given us balaclavas to protect us from the dust. The twins went ahead to clean the cobwebs, which was much easier for them since they could use magic now that they were seventeen. In only a few days time they would go take their Apparition tests, something I was rather envious about.

After getting out most of the dust and cobwebs, Mum started us on cleaning the kitchen which was half-way through. Dumbledore and a few of his spies within the Ministry had managed to find Sirius's old wand, which for some reason had not been snapped (they had made a duplication of it so no one would suspect it was missing). Bill assumed it was for top secret information, like what spells Sirius had supposedly used for his "Master", which he had not. They'd have been better off with Pettigrew's, even though they still had the wands of the other captured Death Eaters in their possession as well.

There were a few times when I passed the room my parents were staying in that I heard Mum crying. I heard Percy's name crop up a few times, along with Dad's agitated voice. Heard Percy's name pierced newly hatched disappointment and anger towards my old brother. I couldn't believe how self-absorbed he had to be to turn his back on his own family. It's not that we wouldn't have been supportive of him, but we all agreed that we wanted to protect him from deceit. Now he had walked willingly into its clutches without a care in the world.

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><p><strong>That's chapter three. I'm currently planning out chapter four.<strong>

**And to Loulou, thanks for the advise there. Ron and the twins weren't shocked because they already knew Ginny acted like this when she was angry. Bill knew it as well, but he was just shocked that Ginny would have an outburst like that. I'll be sure to show more of her tougher side as I go along. As for the parents, they're not too used to seeing her anger. She tends to want to keep that hidden from them.**

** So, I hope this wasn't bad, I really was struggling for a good story line for this chapter. I'm bringing in Hermione as soon as I can. I won't get to Harry too soon though, but you never know. I just want to pan out her summer properly.**

**So, please review. I'd like to hear your thoughts on this. :) **

**~ArtemisIsis13 **


	4. The Order of the Phoenix

**These characters are the property of J.K. Rowling.**

**Here's the latest chapter. I'm currently trying to pan out the summer, so it will take a while between updates. :)**

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><p><strong>Chapter Four<strong>

**The Order of the Phoenix**

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><p>I was fast asleep when I heard Mrs. Black screeching downstairs.<p>

Before that, I was having an old nightmare that haunted my slumbers for three years: my abduction into the Chamber of Secrets. Ever since my first year at Hogwarts I'd been having it. It was just a recurring memory that played itself over and over in my deepest slumbers. The images were too vivid for my liking: the feeling of a dark power consuming me, taking control of my thoughts and body while I walked down a deserted corridor into...my dreams become hazy before opening to the scene of a damp chamber. The darkness only partially released its hold on me enough for me to see a light explode from the diary and hit me in the chest; to see some tall, dark figure walking above me, staring down at me with twisted humor and false pity before I blacked out completely.

And after a while, somehow I could still hear voices that spoke in a deep, soothing tone, and another that merely hissed like a snake. There's nothing but footsteps pacing by my head for what seemed like a very long time. I couldn't even count the seconds that trickled by, or minutes, or hours; it could have been days for Merlin's sake; even weeks, and I couldn't grasp the length of time I was there. All I knew was that I was getting weaker and weaker with every breath I managed to gasp through by thinly parted lips. My strength drained... my heart pumped slower and slower, and my skin felt cold. I couldn't even keep my eyes open. I was thirsty. I was hungry. I was frightened. I was alone. And throughout all of it, I realized it was Riddle's fault. He had done this to me, and I had been foolish enough to let him. And internally I cried over this. What else could I do? I tried fighting his hold to no avail. It didn't matter how hard I tried, he was just too strong. I was going to die here. I was never going to see my parents again, nor my brothers, or my cousins, or anyone else. Not my friends Tacita and Narelle, or working partner Colin, or even Harry. I gave up hope.

Then I heard an explosion.

My dreams would hurdle fast-forward. I could remember warmth on my frozen skin, and someone trying to hold me upright. Whoever it was, he sound like Harry when he spoke. Of all the people I could think of when I was dying was going to be Harry. I didn't really know him. The irony of having a crush on him, then to die in his arms. That took twisted poetic to a whole new level. Then his warm touch was gone and I could only hear yelling. It somehow got louder in my ears. Loud— noises—screaming—the feeling of drifting away and then—

"DREADFUL, PITIFUL SCUM! HOW DARE YOU BEFOUL THIS NOBLE HOUSE! HOW DARE YOU ENTER THE HOUSE OF BLACK!"

"Whoa!" I said as I shot up off my bed so quickly that my head spun. I tumbled to the floor, landing hard on my right elbow. I cried out in pain, my mind muddled and disoriented by the sudden awakening. It took me a few seconds to realize what had happened. I gripped at my aching arm as I groggily sat up on the cold floor. My twisted dream became murky and distorted - the dark memories slipping out of focus as my sense started to prick up.

My room wasn't so dark with the curtains pulled away from the window so I could see everything in my room, though the sight was slightly vague. As my senses started to kick in more, it occurred to me that I shouldn't be on the ground and, embarrassed for not realizing it sooner, I got up off the floor, my legs trembling under my body weight; apparently they hadn't woken up yet. I accidentally banged by leg against the nightstand while trying to steady my balance and I swore under my breath as I closed my eyes. In the morning, my skin was more sensitive than usual (not that it's really sensitive afterwards, mind you!).

Mrs. Black was still shrieking downstairs. I heard Sirius's yells to shut her up, as well as a few others that mingled in between. I couldn't distinguish that they said, but I was pretty sure that it all summed up to: "Shut Up!"

"I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE IT!" I heard a woman yell. "SIRIUS BLACK!"

That opened my eyes. I didn't recall, no matter how tired I was, ever hearing that voice before while staying at Grimmauld Place, or any time before that. I forced some feeling back into my legs and hurried clumsily to the door. There had to be only one reason for anyone to scream at Sirius.

It looked like the Order members had arrived.

I fumbled around as I tried to twist the doorknob in the darkness, cursing my weariness in the process. I managed to pull open the door and as I stumbled in to the hall, I bumped into Fred and George right outside by room. Fred was rubbing his eyes while George's hair stuck up all over the place just like Harry's.

"You don't think they're here?" Fred asked, his voice cracking (from snoring, I suspect. That happens to him a lot).

"I think so," I replied, rubbing my eyes.

"Let's get downstairs," we all said after a moment's hesitation. We met Ron on the way down; he looked no better than our older brothers, maybe worse than me if I looked in the mirror. We saw Lupin and a tall black man wrestle the curtains of Mrs. Black's portrait shut. We made our way to the bottom landing, our eyes wide.

"Well, that was certainly a shock," the black man said. He had a deep, soothing voice, not to mention he was bald. He wore dark blue robes and wore a gold earring in one of his ears. "I must say, I wasn't expecting that."

"I know," Lupin said. "I was expecting a different one."

"Who are you?" Ron asked, staring at the stranger.

"Oh," Lupin said softly, smiling slightly. "I see we've woken you all up. So sorry. This is Kingsley Shacklebolt, he's an Auror at the Ministry as well as a new member of the Order. Kingsley, these are Molly and Arthur's children: Fred and George are the twins, and the others are Ginny and Ron."

"Ah, yes," Kingsley said in low voice, holding out a hand to all of us. "You can call me Kingsley. Sorry if our arrival disturbed you."

"It's no problem," I said, earning a glare from my brothers. I supposed they missed their beauty sleep, not that it helped Ron at all. "Did the Order come?"

"It's just introductions," Lupin said. "One of the recruits accidentally set off the portrait. Why don't you all come to the kitchen? It's only six in the morning."

I ignored my grumbling brothers (we had to wake up in half an hour anyway but I could see why they were complaining) and followed Lupin and Kingsley to the kitchen. Along the way, I wondered who had screamed. It didn't sound like Mum, so I knew it had to be one of the newest recruits. Lots of people would scream in terror when they first saw Sirius, right?

In this case, I was wrong.

On entering the kitchen, a strange and amusing sight met my still weary eyes. There was Sirius, standing in the middle of the kitchen floor, surrounded by the Order members. In his arms (hugging him to death, by the way) was a young woman a few years older than the twins. She was dressed completely in muggle clothes (faded blue jeans that were ripped at the knees, white t-shirt with abstract colors printed on the front, light brown jacket and white trainers) but that wasn't her most startling appearance.

Her short, spiky hair was pink. That's right, you heard me. Pink. Like bubble gum.

Another thing that surprised me was that she was still squealing, but not in terror like I had originally thought. Instead, it was in delight! She was laughing gleefully as Sirius lifted her off the ground and swung her around in circles like a little child in the playground, laughing along with her! Lupin chuckled softly at the sight, along with several of the other people, covering his eyes as Sirius laughed his head off along with the young woman.

"I ALWAYS KNEW IT!" the pink-haired woman laughed. "I always knew you couldn't be murderer! Mum knew it, too! I've never been more thrilled in my life!"

Sirius barked another laugh and set the woman down on her feet. I got a good look at her face. She was quite beautiful, or at least gave off an aura of beauty in the liveliness that was brought out in her, more than physically. She had a soft, heart-shaped face, dark eyes which twinkled playfully and a smile that radiated pure happiness. All that happiness was directed at Sirius.

"I'm glad, Dora," Sirius said, grinning. "At least I have some family who would like me."

"Way to be subtle, Tonks," Kingsley said, shaking his head. "As soon as she discovered the truth, she had to see you, Sirius."

Sirius shook his head playfully at the young woman. Many other the other people were laughing at the sight as well. There was one other person who stood out in the crowd. Ron spotted him before I did.

"Professor Dumbledore!" Ron exclaimed.

I looked around and saw the old professor standing by the cabinets, surveying the scene with utmost amusement. His electric blue eyes twinkled as he looked from Sirius to the pink-haired woman Kingsley had addressed as 'Tonks'. He glanced at the doorway and saw me and my brothers standing next to Lupin.

"Ah, good morning, Misters Weasley, and Miss Weasley," he said gently. "I see Miss Tonks has awakened you to a startling sight today."

All eyes turn to me and my brothers.

"Well, it's kind of hard to sleep with Sirius's lovely mother's melodic voice in our ears," George said cheerfully, earning a few laughs from the crowd.

"Too true," Fred added mockingly. "Who could sleep in the presence of such a siren?"

Cue the snorts from the onlookers.

"Seeing as you are all here," Dumbledore said, smiling at the twins, "why don't meet the members of the Order? You'll be seeing them quite a bit over the summer."

I looked around the dirty kitchen to see who else was there.

There were a few people I recognized: except for my parents, Sirius, Lupin, Dumbledore, Kingsley, and Bill, I saw Professors McGonagall and Snape, the real Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, and two men Dad had once identified as Mundungus Fletcher and Dedalus Diggle. The five others, which included Tonks, I didn't know.

"Wotcher," said the pink haired woman. "I'm Tonks, Sirius's cousin."

"Second-cousin," Sirius corrected. "She's the daughter of my favorite cousin, Andromeda. I haven't seen Nymphadora since she was eight."

At first, I didn't understand who he was talking about. Then suddenly, Tonks's pink hair turned Weasley red. "Don't call me Nymphadora!" she said, pouting at him. "You know I don't like that name!"

"It's the name your mother gave you," Sirius said, suppressing a grin.

"It's a rubbish name," she grumbled, turning back to us. "My full name is Nymphadora Tonks, but I prefer that you call me Tonks."

Nymphadora Tonks. That name rang a bell, but I couldn't place it.

"She'll hex you if you don't," Kingsley warned us. "She's an Auror like myself, and she loathes to be addressed by her first name. I remember what happened to Dawlish when he forgot. It took a whole day before he hair grew back."

A few members in the room laughed. I looked at Tonks who smiled at our startled expressions. As I watched, her red hair turned pink again.

"How do you do that?" I asked.

She touched her hair. "I'm a Metamorphmagus. I can change my appearance at will." And to prove it, she changed her hair brown, her eyes blue, and her nose similar to Snape's before she turned back into her old self.

Something clicked in my head.

"You knew my brother, Charlie?" I asked her. She nodded. "He's mentioned you before. Said you were in his year in Hufflepuff, a chaser for your house team."

"Ah, yes, dragon-obsessed Chuckie-boy. He was a worthy opponent in Quidditch, though he used to flirt with me before each match we had against each other. His distractions never worked on me," she giggled. The twins' grins were practically menacing now. Only god knew what they would do to Charlie when they next saw him.

"Enough of that, before I puke," Sirius said jokingly, earning a slap on the arm while the Order rolled their eyes. He winked and added, "Give the others a turn."

Tonks sighed and joined Kingsley at the other side of the room. The other members came forward.

"I'm Emmeline Vance," said a tall, thin witch standing on Moody's left. She looked a little older than Sirius with long black hair and dark brown eyes.

"I'm Hestia Jones," added a younger woman with short, dark brown hair and eyes, and rosy cheeks.

"Elphias Doge," said a man who looked around Dumbledore's age, which must have been old (no offense to him).

A middle-aged wizard with a square jaw and thick straw-colored hair came forward. "I'm Sturgis Podmore, pleasure to meet you."

"Dedalus Diggle," Dedalus said, his purple top hat slipping off his head. "Oops!" he squeaked, blushing as he bent down to retrieve it. I held back a giggle at that.

"M-Mundungus, Mundungus Fletcher," said the little bald man, hiccuping from behind Moody.

"I'm sure you have met Kingsley Shacklebolt," Dumbledore said, "and that you recognize Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape. We have other members of the Order who currently are unable to attend this first meeting." He surveyed the room. "Many of our old members have regrettably left us, but we remember their sacrifice with honor."

I glanced at my brothers. We had all been told that the Order had been in use in the First War and that many of them had died. Our uncles, Fabian and Gideon Prewett had been part of it; our mother still mourned their deaths.

"But let us not dwell on the thoughts of the parted," Dumbledore said gravely. "It is time we all venture forth in this new Order to protect each other and those who are in danger in both the Muggle and Wizarding Worlds. I trust we will all take up our parts admirably."

Dumbledore's twinkling eyes returned as he looked at each one of us, his eyes lingering for a second on Snape who was staring at the floor near Sirius's feet with absolute venom.

"I welcome you all here today, to the new Order of the Phoenix."

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><p><strong>So that is the fourth chapter. I know it's not much, but I'm trying not to rush anything here. It'll be a few chapters before I bring in Hermione, but she'll come in soon. Until then, I'm going to try and focus on panning out the life in Grimmauld Place as well as Ginny's history with her family and friends ex cetera.<strong>

**So until then, I hope you all are enjoying yourselves and feel free to comment. :)**

**~ArtemisIsis13**


	5. Elves and Lies

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Harry Potter.**

**So, as you can see, chapter five is up and ready. :)**

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><p><strong>Chapter Five<strong>

**Elves and Lies**

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><p>The presence of the Order livened up Grimmauld Place by a small degree.<p>

You see, they couldn't stay often, though many joined us for dinner. With the cleaning and occasional completion of a home work assignment, I was exhausted most of the day. Within the week we finished removing 77% dust around the house, but our chores had just begun. We had upgraded to removing all the dark items that had belonged to the Black family. Sirius took a bigger part in this, seeing as he knew what was extremely dangerous and cursed. What made it harder to dispose of these "dark family treasures" was Kreacher, the Black Family house-elf, who always sneaked into the rooms we were cleaning to steal away anything we had tried to throw away.

Take Tuesday for an example:

I was on the fourth floor with Ron and the twins inside Mrs. Black's bedroom. Our job was to throw away everything in there. And I mean _everything._ The room was supposed to be empty within the next two days at least. Fred and George took out their wands and tried to Vanish several objects, but it looked to us like Mrs. Black had made them all Un-Vanishable, meaning we had to dispose of it all by hand. We had two big rubbish bags in which we all tossed several of the dark possessions of the former mistress. I found a few jewels which tried to bite me as I lifted them from a cabinet drawer. Luckily, George spotted the trouble and levitated them to one of the disposal bags. A curtain grabbed Ron by the arms and it took all three of us to wrench Ron out of its grip. Just as I got to throwing out the clothes, the house-elf turned up. I had rarely seen him in my stay here, but as we had started "messing" with the family possessions, his presence had become even more pronounced.

"What is the little blood-traitor doing with Kreacher's Mistress's clothes?" Kreacher said in his raspy voice, shuffling into the room. He was eying me darkly, like I had done something evil. "Kreacher does not like blood-traitors in his Mistress's room."

"Get out of it!" Ron snapped, glaring at the elf. "Your Mistress is dead. I doubt she would mind."

"The blood-traitor is speaking to Kreacher," the elf croaked. "Kreacher will not listen to him. Kreacher will restore his Mistress's bedroom. Oh yes, he will."

"No, you won't," Fred panted, wiping beads of sweat off his forehead. "We've done a lot of work here! You can't just undo everything!"

Kreacher muttered something unintelligible under his breath but I could guess it was something foul. He walked over to the half-filled bags and took out the bed sheets that Fred had just tossed in, and began to drag them towards the big king-sized bed. It was like we weren't even here!

"Oi!" Fred said indignantly, snatching the bed sheets away from the elf. "What do you think you're doing!"

Kreach made to snatch back the sheets but Fred pulled it all into a bundle and held it over his head. Kreacher glared at him before making his way back to the bags. He pulled out two pillow cases and made his way towards the bed. This time George hurried forward and grabbed them out the elf's reach. Ron and I exchanged startled glances and hurried toward the bags before Kreacher could get there, lifting the bags away from him (I had to put in extra effort because my bag was heavier). Kreacher glared at all of us with absolute venom, like with how Ron looked at Malfoy. He started mumbling under his breath again, making his way to the door. I caught some words like _"blood-traitor", "worthless",_ and _"red-headed devils"_ as he passed me. He eyed the bag in my hands and for a moment I worried that he was going to jump at me and wrench it from my grip, but then he just walked out the door and out of sight.

"What the bloody hell was that about?" Ron gaped, staring after the elf like he was a mad man.

"I don't know," Fred said, shaking his head. "But Sirius mentioned he was absolutely mental."

"Don't let Hermione hear you say that?" I said, releasing the bag so my brothers could put the bed things back in the bag. "You know how she's on about elf rights. She'll think this little encounter was mistreating him."

"Mistreating him?" George grumbled, rolling his eyes. "Ginny, we've been working our bullocks off here and that elf just decides to waltz in and undo everything? I don't think that was mistreating him! He's mistreating us!"

I managed a smile. "How about you guys continue this. I'll be right back."

"Where are you going?" Ron asked as I headed towards the door.

I glanced at him over my shoulder and said, "I talk to Sirius about that elf."

* * *

><p>I found Sirius in the kitchen with Lupin. They were going through the cabinets, taking out the silverware and china. Lupin looked more tired than Sirius who had just killed a cockroach that had scurried across the floor. Trying not to think if there were anymore of those little vermin running around, I cleared my throat to get their attention. The two men looked up at me.<p>

"Oh, Ginny," Lupin said, coughing as one of the cabinets belched dust in his face. He waved his wand, shut the cabinet and cleared the air around his head.

"Sorry, we didn't know you were there," Sirius said as Lupin sneezed. "Can we help you? Do you need something?"

"Yes," I said, folding my arms. "Can you please do something about that house elf? I was just upstairs with my brothers when Kreacher walked into the room and tried to undo all our work. He's awfully disrespectful. Is he always like that?"

Sirius closed his eyes like he was restraining a rant while Lupin sneezed again.

"Kreacher has been a pest for as long as I've known him," Sirius grumbled, shaking his head. "We hated each other since before I started Hogwarts. And him listening to that crazed portrait of my dear mother has made him worse. What'd he try to do?"

"He went into the rubbish bags and took out the bedsheets that Fred had just tossed in," I said, sighing. "Thought he could remake the bed, which I think is pointless. It's not like someone is going to sleep in there."

Lupin sneezed again and groaned. "Actually, someone is going to sleep in there. The room is where Buckbeak is going to stay in," he managed to say before sneezing again. "Will you excuse me?" And without waiting for an answer, he hurried out the kitchen, sneezing again. Sirius and I exchanged a startled glance before bursting into laughter when he heard him sneeze again, causing Mrs. Black to scream.

"I'll go get that," Sirius said, grinning. "I'll be right back."

Sirius ran out of the room towards the source of the screaming. I walked to the middle of the kitchen, looking around the room. It was dark in here. Looking around, I could choose a few places that could use those magical lighting fixtures that I saw in _Witch Weekly_, maybe change the black walls to a lighter color — a pale lime green seemed nice, or silver — and the tiles could be changed from grey to white — though the grey could be from the fact that they hadn't mopped yet. The fireplace was old and crumbling. The one back home looked much better. This was truly a depressing place. The other rooms I'd seen (which included my own) we all dark and Gothic — at least it seemed that way to me. I was impressed that Sirius could come out as cheerful as he was at all. It must have been having awesome friends in his time at Hogwarts, minus Pettigrew.

"So sorry about that," Sirius said and he re-entered the kitchen with Lupin and Mum. She smiled at me as she hurried to a chest in the corner of the room where she held her personal supplies. She pulled out a potion and gave it to Remus.

"Thanks, Molly," Lupin said, sneezing again. "Potions was never my strong suit. I might have poisoned myself if I'd made the medicine."

"You're welcome, Remus," Mum said. She hurried towards the door. "And Ginny, dear, your brothers are asking for you upstairs."

"Okay, thank you, Mum," I said as she left. I looked at Sirius. "Um, so you'll talk to Kreacher?"

"Yes, but it wouldn't do too much," Sirius said. "I swear, that elf is beyond a nuisance. But I'll give it a shot," he added after seeing the pleading look I gave him.

"Thank you," I said, smiling.

* * *

><p>Kreacher stopped coming around to steal away what we had thrown out — at least while we were there. He'd walk in while we were cleaning and mutter under his breath in that annoying little voice of his. He'd insult us as if we weren't there and act surprised when he found us glaring at him. He only stole items away when we weren't present and it was utterly irritating to have to hunt down whatever he had taken to throw back into the rubbish bags. Sirius told us that Kreacher had been around years his before he was born, and not that Sirius was really old or anything, but that must have been a really long time ago.<p>

"Bloody mental, that one is," Ron whispered to me as we passed Sirius's mother's portrait. Kreacher had ducked behind the veil concealing her and was muttering to her quietly. From the sound of it, he was giving her a report of what we were up to. "I wish we could just get rid of him. Set him free, or something."

"We can't, Ron," I whispered back to him as we tiptoed towards the kitchen. "He's heard information about the Order. If we get rid of him, the Death Eaters could easily get information from him."

"And how are they going to do that?" Ron asked skeptically as we entered the kitchen. It was much cleaner in here now that Mum started helping Sirius and Remus more. This evening she was putting in an extra effort into her cooking which tipped me off that there was another meeting coming up. Whenever the Order came for meetings, Mum insisted that we go up to our rooms and wait until the meeting was done. It was a little unfair. I mean, with Voldemort's return — yes, I can say it in my head, but out loud is a little harder — wouldn't it be best if we knew what was going on? Not that we'd used the information to do something reckless, or as Hermione once called it "The Harry Tactics", be we should as let know what sort of waters we're in.

But no. 'You're too young, this is none of your concern.' And yes, that came from Mum. The rest of the Order backed her up, but Tonks, seeing our seething at being babied by Mum, dropped a few hints to us. Nothing major, of course, but she at least had the decency to inform us that, because the Ministry refused to believe that Voldemort was truly back, we were in for a tough lifetime, not just in Grimmauld Place, but when we left for Hogwarts.

Plus, as we entered the kitchen, we found Mum and Dad pouring over the latest issue of the Daily Prophet. When I found out what they were reading, I almost turned into Bill's nickname for me: Wildfire. Printed on the front page was a picture of Harry that was used in the publishings of the Triwizard Tournament. I had to admit, whether I was getting over him or not, his face sent my heart into a short tap-dance (Urgh, damn this wretched childhood crush! He's my brother's best friend, for Merlin's sake!)

"What's that?" Ron asked as we sat by the table. Mum's face was red as she turned away from us. Dad's face was grim as he slid the paper towards Ron and me.

There before us was none other than Harry Potter - or his picture, I dare say: bright green eyes studying us nervously and a sheepish smile playing on his lips — it still astounded me how some people thought of him as this all time celebrity hero like I did when I was a child. After meeting him, I deduced that he was nothing but kind, sweet, and humble. So imagine my fury when I read the headlines:

**HARRY POTTER, THE BOY WHO LIES?**

**By M. Carneirus**

**_Harry James Potter (14), son of the late James Alaric Potter and Lily Evangeline Potter (née Evans), The Boy Who Lived, and Winner of the Triwizard Tournament has brought about a disturbing revelation following the death of fellow Hogwarts Champion, Cedric Diggory. Mr. Potter claimed to have witnessed the supposed return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, the darkest and most feared wizard of this century since Gellert Grindelwald. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named fell on October 31, 1981, and his downfall was brought about by Mr. Potter himself._**

_**In recent events, Mr. Potter's declaration of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's return is met by outrage and fear among Wizarding Society. However, Minister Fudge has assured us that Harry Potter is indeed lying.**_

_**"What can I say? The death of Mr. Diggory has obviously shaken the boy into deluding himself of Lord — well, you know who I mean — has returned," says the Minister. "Rest assured, these statements were proven false. There is no need to panic. There is no further danger to us all. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named died fourteen years ago on Halloween. He is never to return."**_

_**The Minister's statement was met by relief to all in the Wizarding World. Why on earth did Mr. Potter report to us this tattletale is—**_

I couldn't read anymore.

"What the bloody hell is this?" Ron's outraged voice sounded my emotions. "What's this rubbish they're talking about Harry—!"

"Ronald, refrain yourself of this language!" Mum snapped, but he didn't care. I didn't care. Why on earth were they publishing this—this—out of all the words there, why couldn't I choose one?

"But Mum, look what they're saying about Harry!" Ron yelled. His voice was loud enough to set off Mrs. Black — or Mrs. Banshee by the sound of her voice. "Oh shut up!" Ron yelled in the voice's direction.

"Ron. Please calm down," Dad said, his tone soft, but firm. Ron glared daggers at him and threw himself down on his chair, fuming. I couldn't blame him.

"None of this is true," I said, wanting to tear the paper to shreds. "Harry isn't lying! You-Know-Who is back! What are they playing at?"

"Ginny, my dear, please," Dad said, rolling up the paper. "There's a reason Dumbledore recreated the Order. To fight You-Know-Who. The Fudge doesn't want to believe it."

"Why not?" Ron said, eying the paper as if hoping his gaze would cause it to burst into flames. "Tell us, why not?"

We heard a thunder of footsteps in the hallway and Mrs. Banshee's screams were cut off. Fred and George appeared in the doorway, rubbing their ears and glaring in the direction of the hall. Then they caught our angry faces and paused, momentarily confused.

"What's going on?" They asked.

"Look at this!" I said, tugging the paper out of Dad's grip to show them. Their expressions turned from confusion to disbelief to downright fury. They started their own ranting bit, which turned Mum over the edge. I didn't listen, though Ron agreed with most of what they were saying, and the arguments attracted Sirius and Lupin to the room. I sat there by the table, blocking out the yelled of my mother to my brothers, of Mrs. Banshee, and of Ron's whining. I sat there and stared at the paper. Harry stared back, but I wasn't looking at him. This was more than just Harry. I opened the paper and looked through its pages. There were several articles portraying Harry as a joke, mocking his declaration of Voldemort's return. Even Dumbledore was being ridiculed. Why were they so determined to prove the truth false?

"Why are they doing this?" I asked, but no one answered. They were too busy arguing. "Ugh!" I rolled my eyes and slammed by hand hard on the table. Oh, bad move! My hand burned in pain but I ignored it, clenching it down into a shaking fist. Everyone turned towards me, little Ginny by the table. "I said, why are they doing this?"

The adults stared at me. You'd have thought I'd asked them this in Chinese. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes again and lifted the paper up for them to see. _"Why—are—they—doing—this—to—our—friend?"_ I repeated in a slow voice, as if speaking to a child. They caught on to my tone and blushed, realizing they had frozen. Mum glanced down at my hand and winced.

"Ginny, let me see you hand," she said.

"I'm fine, Mum," I said, not caring about my hand. I shook the paper. "Can someone please just answer the question? It's not that hard."

They couldn't argue with that. Sirius sighed. "Fudge has his pride up his—"

"Sirius!" Mum cried in admonishment. Lupin came in to rescue him.

"What Sirius is trying to say is that Fudge—is scared," Lupin corrected, ignoring my Mum's glare at his best friend. "Voldemort's first downfall meant hope for the Wizarding World. It took years to rebuild what we have today." He glanced at Dad who gave him the smallest of nods and continued. "The Minister doesn't want to lose what we have—a peaceful life. Dumbledore has tried to persuade him otherwise, but Fudge is immovable to the matter. Declaring Voldemort's return would mean subjecting us all to the horrors we all once fought to escape. Fudge does not want that to happen. He'd rather believe that a boy who, in the past claimed that a mass murderer was innocent and the real murderer was a man who had died and can currently turn into a rat, and has gone through a traumatic event in the Triwizard whilst witnessing the death of another student, has—in a way—gone around the bend enough to lie about Voldemort's return. In his eyes, there is nothing logical to fill in the blanks that are trailing questions."

"In other words, he's too cowardly to accept the truth and prefers to live in a lie if it means he can bask out in his own comfort?" I asked in disgust. How in the name of Merlin was this man the Minister of Magic if he wasn't being responsible. "He wants people to think Harry is lying so they'd go along with it too?"

"Well, that's another way to put it," Lupin said, turning pink. I guess he realized he didn't have to go through such detail to get the point into my head.

"This is ridiculous," I said, shaking my head. The pain in my hand was getting worse. Usually by now it would ease up.

"There's nothing we can do about it now," Dad said gently. "If we go out there and run our mouths that You-Know-Who has returned, it would have very severe consequences. People don't want to believe it, just like Fudge. The best we can do is recruit who we can trust, and protect whatever we can. You and your brothers aren't ready for any of this."

"What about Harry?" Ron asked. "Look what they're making of him! What are we supposed to do?"

"For now, nothing," Mum said. "Harry has to stay with his family until Dumbledore says otherwise. Now, I know this will be tough for you, Ron, but you can't tell Harry about any of this. Not the Order, not anything."

"Why not?"

"He can't know," Lupin said. "We need to organize ourselves here. We need to put down a stable fountain as the headquarters, which at the moment are coming a little hard."

"Damn elf," Sirius muttered under his breath. Lupin rolled his eyes.

"Yes, well, there's that," Lupin said. "And there is no guarantee that the information you send would be safe. Harry is trustworthy but messages can be intercepted. That is the last thing we need. If you want to contact him, don't give away any information."

"What about Hermione?" Ron asked, turning slightly pink.

"We're arranging with her parents to see if she can come stay with us," Sirius said. "But until she arrives, the rules apply."

"And my friends?" I asked. "The rules apply too, right? I can't tell them anything about what's going on with me. I wouldn't tell them about the Order," I added. "But I can't tell them about my summer? Right?"

"Right," Mum said, smiling. "That goes for the two of you," she pointed to the twins. "Now, Ginny, your hand?"

"What about it?" I asked, confused. Well, it still hurt...

"Let me bandage it," she said.

Bandage it? I looked down and mentally gasped. By accident, I had banged my hand on the cutting knife (which was now bloody) that rested innocently on the table. The blade had cut into my palm. It wasn't deep, but it had been deep enough to bleed.

"Oh, Merlin," I said, biting my lower lip in embarrassment. "I should have realized that..."

"You didn't know you were bleeding?" Fred asked. I shook my head as Mum took my hand into hers.

"It's fine, Mum," I said, ignoring the stinging I felt.

"Ginny, you're just like Harry," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "You could've broken every bone in your body and you'd have said you were fine. Is there some sort of Course for this?"

"There are worse people to be like. And no," I said, blushing slightly. "It's just a cut."

"One that could have severed a vein," Mum said disapprovingly. "Don't you ever do this again."

"I wouldn't have had to do this if you'd all just stop yelling your mouths off to listen," I grumbled as she healed the cut with her wand. There was a small scar there, but it would be gone in a matter of weeks.

Mum sighed and rest a hand on the side of my face. "Ginny, just try not to worry over this too much. It will get better. It won't be like this forever. Not for Harry or anyone else we care about."

"They're making a joke of him," I said angrily, but my tone was softer. "He's anything but a joke."

Mum smiled down at me, but there was something off about it. What was it called? A Knowing Look? I had given my fair share of those to my two best friends, Tacita and Narelle, but if the look Mum gave me was anything like the looks I had given my friends, then I was worried. I hoped she wasn't assuming I still had feelings for Harry... I dating Michael — not that she knew that. My defense of Harry — I'd do that for any of my friends.

Ron and I went back upstairs. I made sure not to bother Mrs. Banshee (the name seemed more suitable) as I passed and headed straight up to my room. Pacing didn't help much, and ranting only vented my feelings up to a limit. There was always the diary Tacita gave me, but after Riddle, I'd never trust writing in a diary again. I wanted to talk to someone — anyone (who I could trust, at least) about how I was feeling. Last summer, I spoke to Hermione, but she wasn't here. I wouldn't dare tell Mum, and Tonks wasn't here... Then it hit me.

I could write a letter to Tacita. Not detailed with summer events, but with anything teenage girls could talk about. Then again, there would be a lot of editing to do, but it was the best shot I had right now.

* * *

><p><strong>Here there, sorry about not updating in...a long time.<strong>

**I have been stuck with the flu. I still have a few symptoms, but I'll live. This update isn't much, but it's the best I could do when I'm currently thinking about a "Reading the Books" storyline for Percy Jackson and Harry Potter crossover. It would go into a further story, but at the pace I'm going, I don't know how long that would take. "The Burrow - Life Before Harry" is on Hiatus now. I'm not sure when I'm continuing that story. For now, I'm trying to focus on one story, though I have a ton that I want to do, not just for Harry Potter, but for Percy Jackson too.**

**Other than that, there's not much to add. Oh! Have you seen the Hunger Games Movie? I loved it! I read the book immediately afterwards and I am hooked! I just started Catching Fire now. It's a really good series.**

**So, okay, that's enough for now. It's best I go to bed. It's 1:45 AM where I am, and I have to get some shut eye. So review. Criticism and complaints are welcomed (as long as there are no foul language. I hate those.) That's all for now, folks! :D**

**~ArtemisIsis13**


	6. Writing a Letter

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of Harry Potter.**

**I'm sorry about no updates on this one in a while, but I'm low on ideas. It's just dragging by.**

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Six<strong>

**Writing a Letter**

* * *

><p>I rummaged through my trunk and picked out an old quill, blue ink, and parchment. The minute I decided I was going to write a letter to Tacita, I tried to talk myself out of it. I know that sounds stupid, but I just wasn't all too sure if I should. It was only two weeks into the summer vacation. She was probably on that vacation to Italy with her parents. She had told me about it on the train ride home:<p>

* * *

><p>My brothers and I had just loaded on to the Hogwarts Express. Ron departed off with Harry and Hermione while the twins decided to go join their friends Lee and Angelina in their compartment, so I headed off to search for my best friends, Tacita and Narelle. I looked for my other friend Luna along the way, but I couldn't find her. She always had trouble packing up at the end of the school years, so maybe she was running late and hadn't boarded yet.<p>

I passed a compartment of Fourth Year Hufflepuffs, another filled with Sixth Year Slytherins, another with a mix of Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors, but so far, I didn't see my friends. Luckily, they found me.

"Ginny! Ginny, over here!" Tacita was standing outside another compartment, waving me over eagerly.

"Hey, City," I said, hurrying over. Tacita gave me a hug and helped me carry my heavy trunk. Narelle was already there, reading from her favorite muggle novel, _Pride and Prejudice_. Tacita helped me load up my trunk on the rack and we plopped ourselves down on the seat opposite Narelle.

Tacita Brassington and Narelle Abrams have been my friends since First Year, though I knew Tacita longer (my father knew her father). Tacita was a pureblood witch but she wasn't part of the whole "Blood-Prejudiced Society", as she called it. She is very beautiful (you should see how the boys run after her like lovesick dogs) but she doesn't care about how she looks. Her hair was dark brown, straight until you met the edges which spiked out around her waist. Her skin was pale, but her cheeks were naturally rosy, giving off the illusion that she was always blushing. Her eyes were dark green, almost ebony, as she had a rebel look about her that got her in trouble almost as much as the twins. As we got older, her petite frame started curving out — and so did mine as I think about it. The only difference was that she got taller than me fast; I barely grew a few inches.

Narelle was a half-blood witch with a pureblood mother and a muggleborn father who kept her in tune with whatever went on in the muggle world. Narelle was pretty too, but the two of us had nothing on Tacita. Her light brown hair was curly and fell to her shoulders and her wide eyes were blue. She had pixie-like facial features, olive skin, and a broader frame than me and Tacita. Her skin was a little dry since she didn't moisturize often and she was pretty strong. She could beat several guys at arm wrestling, I can tell you that. I don't think Abel and Radley have ever forgiven her for that old match back in second year.

In a matter of minutes, the train was off. I sat by the window, watching the trees pass by. Eventually, the trees turned to meadows, and the meadows to fields. The sky was bright when we left Hogwarts, but I guess that further away, the clouds wanted to play. It didn't look like it was going to rain, but the sky didn't look at all that friendly. None of us spoke at all along the journey. After an hour of silence, Narelle cracked the muteness.

"Things are going to be different now, aren't they?" Her question was more like a statement.

Tacita looked at her sadly and nodded. "Yeah, they are. I would be surprised if nothing changed."

It didn't take a genius to know what they were talking about. Cedric Diggory. He came up in almost every discussion we'd had. It made me uncomfortable. Not that I knew Cedric well and all, but I'd spoken to him a few times before. Tacita was a distant relative of his, not close at all, but they acknowledged each other. She most definitely didn't want to talk about him now that he was — well, that he — he ... I'll just say it. He's dead. There, I said it!

I didn't know too much about Cedric, but like everyone else, I'd been affected by his death. Tacita had gone quiet for a few days, but she had jumped back up after all, just not with her usual feisty attitude. That had bothered a lot of people, but it was to be expected. Why, if something were to happen to one of my relatives... I internally screamed at the thought. I didn't want to think of losing anyone I loved. That would be a nightmare.

"What are you guys doing this summer?" I asked, a little annoyed that my voice cracked, not from emotion, but because I was swallowed while talking. It's happened before.

Narelle and Tacita looked at me. "I'm going to stay with my grandparents for a while," Narelle said softly. "The muggle ones."

"I'm going to Italy," Tacita said softly, her expression regretful. I wished she'd stop doing that.

The Brassington family was wealthy, like the Malfoys, the Browns, the Blishwicks, the Notts, and so many others. I am, of course from the Weasley family, who are known soully as pitifully poor blood-traitors. Tacita didn't like to talk to me about her home, or lifestyle, as she viewed it as an insult to me. I didn't mind though. It was how she lived. It wasn't her fault she was rich, yet she acted like it was. I was tired of talking about it with her.

"That sounds nice," I said, smiling at her so she would relax her tense shoulders, which she did, thankfully.

"Yeah, my parents wanted to take me last summer, but with the World Cup and all it couldn't happen." She shrugged as if to say '_What are you going to do?_'. I remembered seeing her at the campsite we were in, but we weren't able to chat long before the game started, and I hadn't seen her until the train ride to school.

"Get me a souvenir," I ordered in mock seriousness, causing the two of us to fall into giggles. Narelle rolled her eyes at us and continued reading her book. There came a knock at the door and the lady with the trolley poked her head in.

"Anything from the trolley, dears?" she asked kindly.

"Sure," Tacita said, standing up immediately. She loaded the seat next to Narelle with all sorts of sweets and food, so we got down to work on eating it out.

I was on my fourth chocolate cauldron when there came a knock on the door. A blond head poked in and I met the wide silvery eyes. It was Luna.

"Hello, Ginny, Narelle, Tacita," she said, smiling at all of us.

"Hey, Luna," Tacita said, smiling. Tacita liked Luna, but Narelle wasn't a fan. She didn't say it outright, but I knew that being near Luna irritated her. That irritated me. Luna was a childhood friend. She lived in the same area with me, after all.

"I thought you would be in a compartment by now," I commented, knowing that Luna was always a first to get a compartment to herself. She liked the quiet when she was reading her Quibbler, a magazine that people teased her about.

"I was," she said, a hint of sadness in her voice, "but a group of Slytherins wanted it. I didn't want any trouble, so I left." She caught onto my expression. "It's not bad, really. They had a bad manifestation of nargles around them. They didn't believe me when I told them, but I knew staying wouldn't be good."

_Nargles?_ Another one of her make-believe creatures. She's been talking about them since she was nine. I didn't mind. Even if it wasn't real, it was interesting, like fairy tales.

"Do you want to share with us?" Tacita asked kindly. Narelle pursed her lips but said nothing.

"Oh, I don't want to be a bother," Luna said earnestly. "I just wanted to say hello."

Luna was one of the kindest people I'd ever met. Her bizarre manner of thinking was refreshing from all the stereotypical girls and boys I knew, but it also made her unpopular. Many thought she was crazy, or too weird for words. They even called her "Loony Lovegood" — a name that if heard too often, it got mixed up with her actual name. Even I'd slipped at times, and those were the moments when I wanted to drown myself in shame.

"It's no bother," I insisted. "Come on."

I moved around the sweets to make space for her. Luna smiled at me and joined us in the compartment. From thereon, she read quietly from her Quibbler, adding an input about one of her strange creatures while Tacita and I talked about Italy. She said something about nereids — whatever those were. Narelle didn't say anything for most of the trip, but I could tell she wasn't pleased with me.

* * *

><p>Now I was looking at a blank piece of parchment, debating on what to tell Tacita. Not anything about the Order, nor Sirius, nothing with what was going on this summer. Well, I had to tell her something... Should I mention the article about Harry? In Italy, I wasn't sure what they would make of him. Maybe they wouldn't make a big deal of him other there. After all, Harry was resided in England. They wouldn't want to bother their magical brethren with nonsense stories about a teenager, would they? I could only hope.<p>

I dipped my quill into the ink and let my hand draw out the words onto the parchment:

**_Dear Tacita,_**

**_It's Ginny. Oh, that was stupid to write. Of course this is Ginny, who else would have this awful handwriting? I'm sorry, I'm not in the best mood right now. My family is staying over at a friend's house this summer and my brothers are being a pain. Well, when aren't they?_**

**_Alright, a stupid start, I know. I just wished I had someone to talk to right now. I can't settle for my parents, or my brothers — speaking about my brothers, Percy has finally lost it. He's completely disowned us as a family after he got a job promotion. I think it might be easier to explain in person that in words. Remind me to talk about it when we get on the train. All I can tell you is that we're all pissed off at him like a goblin who's had his treasure taken away._**

**_But that's not why I'm writing to you. I'm not sure if this has come up in Italy, but you remember Harry? And no, not Harry Davidson, the guy who keeps asking you out. I mean Potter. You wouldn't believe all the crat they're writing about him in the Prophet, but if you've heard, you have to know that they're wrong. Harry isn't what they are making him out to be. It was so frustrating to read. I don't blame my family for yelling about it._**

**_As for my summer, well, it's boring. This house needs serious cleaning. There is too much dust and critters around here. I think the only reason we were invited to stay over was just to clean the place. And don't ask about it. Trust me, it would make your skin crawl._**

**_Have you heard from Narelle? I haven't written to her yet nor has she written to me. I supposed she can't use owls around her grandparents, but I don't think I can get letters from her the muggle way, especially if she mailed them to the Burrow._**

**_Okay, enough about me. What about you? How's Italy? Are the guys chasing you yet. Don't roll your eyes at me. I know you are, there's no denying it. And no, I'm not prophetic, I just know you well enough. Anyway, I hope you're not having any trouble with boys._**

**_Oh, that reminds me, I'm dating Michael. Yes, Corner. It happened at the end of the term on the train ride home. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but I was still trying to get used to it. You can scream at me for not telling you about it on the train to school._**

"Ginny! Can you come help in the kitchen?" I heard Bill say from the other side of my door downstairs.

"Sure, in a minute," I said.

_**I have to go, Bill is calling me. Oh, yeah, Bill is in the country. Do you want me to tell him hi? I know how much you always wanted to say that. Don't protest, I know you have a crush on him. Anyway, I've got to go. I will write again soon. I hope.**_

_**Love from Ginny.**_

I sighed glumly at the letter. It wasn't that good, nor was letter-writing my thing, but it was all I had.

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><p>The next few days went by in a blur. We were given two days rest to do some of our homework. I knew the twins were in their room, planning out more items for WWW and Ron was probably in his room or with Bill downstairs. I decided to try and get my Charms homework out of the way. Who knew when I would be given a break like this again?<p>

Professor Flitwick had assigned three essays to write out in two-feet length. That was a hard one and I ended up with a cramped hand in the end, but it was out of the way. I still had time, so I started History. That was the true bore. I fell nearly fell asleep twice writing my essay. Narelle was the History wiz and I could have really used her help with this one, but I was on my own. I swore to myself that when I finished my OWLs, I would drop history as soon as I could.

Soon, we had to start with our chores again. By the end of the next two days, my back hurt a lot. Ron's arms were sore and the twins were scowling with every step that they took. Sirius and Lupin helped out the best that they could, but they were given the tasks to handle the rougher parts of the house, so most of the time we were stuck with mum on the lower levels of the building.

"I'm going to die from any more of this," George groaned as he sat down at the kitchen table. "Honestly, what was that elf doing all these years?"

"Nothing," Sirius grumbled. "Absolutely nothing. Why I have to keep him, I still don't understand. All he wants is for me to leave and for his head to go up on that wall with his ancestors."

"He wants his head on a wall?" Ron asked with disbelief. "That's just mental."

"If it's mental?" Sirius sighed and took out a few bottles of butterbeer. "Here, you could use this."

"Thanks," we said, accepting the bottles from him.

We sat in silence from nearly ten minutes before Bill showed up from his work at Gringotts. He was unusually flushed.

"Hey, Bill, what's up with you?" Fred asked.

"Oh, nothing, nothing," Bill said, waving his hand. "Just another day at work. How's everything here?"

"Horrible," Ron said. "I want to go to the Burrow."

"Don't we all?" George asked rhetorically before taking another sip of butterbeer.

"Where's Mum?" Bill asked, looking around.

"In her room," a voice said from behind us. I looked up and saw Lupin standing there with a grim expression on his face. "She crying about Percy again."

We groaned and hissed and the mention of Percy's name. If I were to ever come across him again, I would smack him so hard in the face that his eyes would pop out. I still couldn't believe he would hurt us like this, especially Mum.

"Anyone coming over, Remy?" Sirius asked.

"Tonks and Kingsley," Lupin said. "The other members of the Order are with their families."

"Tonks, eh?" Sirius smiled. "Hey, I remember when Andy was pregnant with her. The woman wouldn't shut up about about her."

Lupin laughed. "I know, you dragging James and me to visit her once."

We all laughed at that, but we stopped when Mum entered the kitchen with red eyes. Instead of laughing, I was sending mental slaps in Percy's direction, wherever he may be.

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><p><strong>I know, not a good chapter, but I didn't like the fact that I didn't update it yet. I am honestly very tired and I'm doing my best to keep up with my other story, "Demigods and Wizards."<strong>

**~ArtemisIsis13**


	7. Slow Progress in Grimmauld Place

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from the Harry Potter series.**

**I'm sorry there have been slow updates. Sometimes I forget that I'm writing this story when I'm so busy on the other one.**

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><p><strong>Chapter Seven<strong>

**Slow Progress in Grimmauld Place**

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><p>Nothing changed in the past few days.<p>

We continued to reside in Grimmauld Place, doing all sorts of heavy cleaning that put off our moods by the end of the day. It didn't help that Kreacher always sneaked in when he thought we weren't looking to put everything back in its "proper place" and disturb all the effort we made. Along with trying to steal the rubbish bags, he tended to insult us as if none of us had a pair of ears to our name. It became a frequent sight to see Sirius toss Kreacher out of the room when he appeared this way. At first it seemed cruel to most of us, but when it came in as a traditional sense.

I knew immediately that if Hermione were ever to see what Sirius did to Kreacher, she'd go into a complete SPEW frenzy about the entire situation, whether Kreacher deserved it or not.

Kreacher hadn't exactly made himself a likable person around the house, but I had to admit that Sirius had taken it a bit overboard when it came to putting him in his place, which never seemed to work in the end. Whenever I didn't have to clean around Grimmauld Place, I was in my room, trying to finish off pieces of my homework, bit by bit. I started off on all my Charms essays, spending nearly an entire day finishing everything that Professor Flitwick had handed out.

After that, I started with Herbology.

That was the repeated pattern for the next few days. The Order still came and went, and we still cleaned, and tried to finish off my homework. Ron did as well—though I suspected it was somewhat reluctantly—and the twins were always in their rooms or elsewhere, working on their little projects where Mum couldn't find them. When it came to the products they produced, I tended to stay away and never accept what they gave me until they proved it was safe—well, that it wouldn't have permanent damage, to the very least.

When I found some free time, I simply gazed out of the bedroom window into the street, watching as the muggles walked passed our house. They never noticed anything strange about the face that Grimmauld Place was missing, leaving the house on either side of us to go from 11 to 13. Did they ever wonder why there wasn't any 12? Maybe they decided it was an error in labeling, or something along those lines.

I rested my head down on my arm on the windowsill, watching as a mother struggled with her two misbehaving children on the sidewalk. The window was a bit dusty. I lifted my finger and wiped it gentle against the glass, removing a small layer from it to see the outside much clearer. I continued to do with, making small random shapes on the window until I was completely bored.

I missed the Burrow. I missed being able to go outside and get rain and sunshine on my face, or sit under the trees by the paddock, or even watch the gnomes fight over worms. Grimmauld Place was no Burrow. I didn't have my old room, or any of my favorite books to read or games to play. I couldn't even sneak a flight on a broomstick in this place. I longed to go back to Hogwarts. At least there, I'd find something interesting to do, other than cleaning, which I can tell you, is not that interesting.

There was a soft knocking at the door.

"Come in!" I called, loud enough for them to hear, but not loud enough to set the Banshee off. I turned around as the door opened, revealing Bill in the doorway. His hair was in its usual ponytail and the dragon tooth earrings glinted on his earlobes.

"This came for you," he said, holding up a letter for me to see. "I managed to get it before Fred and George could get a snag at it."

I smiled at my favorite brother. "Thanks, Bill," I said, getting up and crossing the room to get the letter from him. As I took it from his hand, I asked, "Is there anything new?"

Bill shook his head. "No, everything's still relatively the same," he replied. "What about you, Ginny? How're you coping with what's going on?"

I frowned at him. "What do I mean?" I asked, confused.

Bill entered my room, shut the door behind him, and took the seat right next to the doorway. I sat at the edge of the extra bed placed in my room and looked at him expectantly.

"Ginny, you don't have to pretend that all of this isn't bothering you," he stated. "I know what happened with Percy rattled you." I grimaced at the sound of Percy's name; that seemed to encourage Bill to talk. "I know you're upset about what's happening to Harry with the _Prophet_. And I know that you don't like to be locked away from the world like a caged animal. How do you feel about staying in Grimmauld Place?"

Did we really have to talk about this _now_? Suddenly being bored didn't sound so boring anymore.

I chewed on my lip as I stared down at the letter in my hands. It was a while before I actually answered him.

"I thought it would be different, finding out You-Know-Who returned," I admitted. "But the Ministry thinks it's a hoax and their treating Harry like he's a joke, and the rest of the world is agreeing. I can deal with being in hiding because we need to be safe, but this is just ridiculous."

"Ginny," Bill sighed.

"I mean it," I insisted. "I guess I'm still a little girl because I'm not allowed to know what's going on as well," I added. "I can't keep contact with my friends like I used to. And that old house-elf isn't making life any easier around here. Sometimes I wonder if I'm dreaming." I stared at my knee. "And then there's Percy. I don't even know what to make of that anymore. It's like he's—gone."

I couldn't really stop talking but it seemed like a river rushing from my mouth as I spoke. Some points I'd never realized came to light because I couldn't just shut my mouth.

"I mean, I've known Percy all my life," I continued, "and I may not have spent much time about him but I thought I knew him better than—this! Some prat who turns his back on his family because he refuses to listen to reason! He'd rather be in the Minister's back pocket or something. All these years and it's like family means nothing to him!" I folded my arms and stared at the floor. "Everything is so rushed that if I stop looking for one second, I'll miss something."

Bill rose from the chair and came to stand by me. I was so short next to him that I felt like an eight year old all over again. "It'll get better again, Wildfire," he said reassuring. "I know it looks like it's going under, but for something to get better, it gets worse."

"You sound like Granddad Septimus," I muttered.

"Well, I think that's a good thing," Bill replied, nudging my arm fondly. "These are the things that happen in wars to come, Ginny. There's conflict. There's disbelief and mistrust. The Ministry will get it right eventually, but we're not going to wait for that to happen. I remember what the first war was like. Believe me, this is a light start. And it'll get worse. What we do now is to stand together and fight."

"Mum would lock me in my room the day that comes," I joked. Bill chuckled.

"She's just trying to protect us," he said. "She lost our uncles in the last war. I think the last thing she wants is to lose any of us."

I thought about Percy, and how he abruptly left our family behind like we were all strangers in passing, and how at the Ministry he ignored my father as a haughty pure-blood would an ignorant muggle. There was a possible chance, not matter how much I wanted to think otherwise, that Mum may not have a choice in losing one of us.

There was a soft knocking on the door and Mum popped her head in my room.

"Ah, Bill, there you are," she said. "Remus needs your help downstairs, dear."

"I'll be right there," Bill said and Mum disappeared from the room. Bill got to his head and patted my red hair. "I'll talk to you at lunch."

"Sure," I said and he left the room. The room was oddly cold now that he was gone. I got up to follow him—maybe I could sneak a snack to eat—when I realized I still had the letter to read.

'It's not going to hurt,' I thought, picking up the clean white envelope and tearing the seal to get to the letter. It was from Hermione. It was the first letter I'd gotten from her this summer. I wasn't even sure if she had written to Ron. I think he wrote to her a few days ago. I unfolded the letter and began to read Hermione's neat script:

**Dear Ginny,**

**I've been meaning to write to you for ages. There are quite a few topics that I can't bear to discuss with my parents now that I'm home again. I mean, I have spoken to them about You-Know-Who's return. I can tell you this, they are worried. I can tell that Mum is debating on whether to send me back to school at the end of the summer. They aren't well equipped to protect me and magic is not allowed out of school. This is one time where I sorely wish it could be otherwise. I've written to both you and Ron, and only Ron wrote to me before. I hear you've had quite a bit to deal with, but he's been vague on why. He said something about a little devil wandering around. Could you elaborate?**

I tried not to laugh. It seemed like Ron was trying to avoid telling Hermione about Kreacher.

**I've never felt so exposed in my own home before. Now that You-Know-Who's back it's so difficult not to worry about the little things. I've received a letter from Dumbledore only yesterday, which is why I started writing this. I know I should have before, but I was worried that the owl could be intercepted. It's better to be safe than sorry.**

'_Mad-Eye would be proud_,' I thought fondly.

**The news is that I'm coming over to wherever you all are staying for the summer. No one will tell me where, but I hear from Ron that it needs a lot of fixing up.**

Hermione was coming to Grimmauld Place? That was the most wonderful news I heard all day. Then I remembered that Kreacher was here and how Hermione was with house-elves. In some ways it wasn't so wonderful, but I was eager to see her.

**My parents aren't too pleased with me being away from them so soon, but they understand that it's to keep me safe, and Dumbledore said he would place precautions to keep them safe. I've already started packing my trunk, which I had not even finished unpacking in the first place.**

**I hope you're doing well. I heard about Percy. I couldn't believe what he did. Ron was extremely incensed about it. He used the word "bloody" more than any other when he wrote about him.**

I snorted. Typical angered Ron…

**I know I can't talk about Harry in this letter. I am beyond appalled at how the Ministry is treating him. I've written to him and he seems okay. I'm not sure if he's getting the Prophet where he is; he hasn't said anything about it. I don't think he knows. Dumbledore says that we can't tell him about the Order. There so much that I need to talk about and there's really no one to talk with about them.**

I knew how that felt. Talking to Bill was one thing, but it was much easier to talk to Hermione. Call it "Girl-Talk" but in a way it was more therapeutic. The rest of the letter detailed Hermione's eagerness to join us at our safe haven and learn about what we were doing about You-Know-Who, and talk.

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><p>It was a regular norm around Grimmauld Place before Hermione arrived for the rest of the summer vacation. Cleaning around the house was tiring and stressful, especially with Kreacher trolling around at the house thief, and discovering a few unexpected trickery curses on the furniture, compliments of Sirius's delightful mother. I'd learned her name was Walburga from the tapestry of the Black Family. Personally, I still enjoyed calling her "Banshee". I mean, <em>Walburga<em>? And I thought _Ginevra_ was a curse.

One Monday morning, Ron took me up to see Sirius in his mother's room during our cleaning break where we found him feeding dead rats to a striking grey hippogriff named Buckbeak tethered out on a ruined mattress.

"Wait," I said, the minute Ron told me its name. "Buckbeak, as in Hagrid's hippogriff? The one that got executed?"

"Not exactly," Sirius said, throwing another rat at Buckbeak who snapped it up hungrily. I swallowed the bile in my stomach. I didn't like rats. I didn't like Scabbers, even before I knew he was an animagus traitor. I still had the memories of seeing rat skeletons littered around a dark, smelly tunnel towards a chamber that still gave me nightmares...

Sirius threw Buckbeak another rat. "Buckbeak was never executed. You can say he's a fugitive, like me."

"Yeah, Harry and Hermione saved him," Ron said. "Long story, but Sirius escaped from the Minister and the dementors with Buckbeak."

"Where were you?" I asked, taking a seat a good distance away from the hippogriff. I wasn't actually terrified of him, but there was something in his stare that made me shiver.

"In the hospital wing," Ron said in a small voice.

I decided not to ask him why. I knew he had been in the hospital wing for a while that year. No one had been too clear. They said he went near the Whomping Willow and had an accident. I could tell from the look on Ron's face at the time that it had been a lie, but I hadn't pressed him for anything.

"So, I take it you lot are avoiding your mum?" Sirius guessed, looking up at Ron and me.

"Just trying to get the feeling back in my fingers, really," Ron said, walking carefully up to Buckbeak, eyes wide and calm, before bowing. Buckbeak stared at him for a second and then bowed his head. "They'll be nothing but bone by the end of the summer."

"Well, if that elf had bothered to be of any use around here you wouldn't have had to," Sirius grumbled. "He was like that when I used to live here. He used to listen to my mother's every word. He never did like my father, but he was loyal to him too. And he treated me like I was filth."

"What'd you do that was so bad?" I asked.

"Besides becoming a Gryffindor?" Sirius asked with a teasing smile. "My family weren't Death Eaters, but they supported Voldemort." Ron and I tried not to shudder at the name. "I was against that, and all their family values. I dressed as a muggle. Took interest in their lifestyles. I was rebellious to the name of Black. James used to say I was the _Black sheep._"

Ron and I laughed.

"I couldn't even live here anymore," Sirius added. "I moved out and never looked back. Well, until now."

Buckbeak snapped his beak impatiently. Chuckling, Sirius threw him another rat.

"I hear Fred and George are getting their apparition tests this week," Sirius said.

"Yeah," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "And then they'll never walk again."

I burst into laughter. "Mum won't tolerate that," I said, shaking my head. "She'd put anti-apparition jinxes everywhere."

"Let her try," Ron said. "Fred and George won't go down without a fight."

"Which reminds me, she'll be looking for us," I said, rising to my feet. "If she finds us in here, she'll have a fit."

"Nah, she doesn't like coming near Buckbeak," Ron said, patting the hippogriff's beak. "And the rats don't speak complimentary."

"I'll be down for dinner," Sirius said, picking up another rat from the bag. I looked away so I wouldn't gag.

"Wash your hands!" I called after him as I walked out the door with Ron.

* * *

><p>A few members of the Order stayed back for dinner. Cooking was a whole lot better than cleaning. I got to spend time about good smells rather than the putrid stuff in the potions that Mum used to clean the furniture. The room was filled with chatter. The adults were speaking about events at the Ministry. Fred and George were talking in quiet tones, which made me suspicious. What were they up to? Ron sat next to me and Tonks, whose hair was a bright shade of blue this evening.<p>

If I hadn't known Tonks was an auror, I never would have guessed it. She was feisty and full of life. Everyone knew that Mad-Eye was paranoid, so we all expected him to be suspicious of everything. Kingsley was more collected and authoritative, which was good because he could keep Mad-Eye from going too far with all his theories about what You-Know-Who would be up to, which I assume were all still taken into consideration. As a minor, I was still not allowed to know what was going on in the Order.

"You're staring," Tonks said, raising a blue eyebrow at me.

I blushed and looked down at my dinner.

"I didn't mean to," I said. "I still can't get over the fact that—"

"—I can change my appearance at will?" Tonks guessed. "Shocking at first, but it's fun. Watch." Before my very eyes, Tonks' spiky blue eyes began to morph into elegant green curls.

I grinned. "Oh, that's brilliant," I said, laughing softly. "Can you do purple?"

"Do you have to ask?" Tonks' hair immediately morphed into a bright purple cascade tumbling over her shoulder. "And it's not only hair."

"What'd you mean?" Ron asked through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.

"Ron, mouth closed," I said disapprovingly. "You're going to spray us all!"

Ron swallowed the mashed potatoes noisily. "Sorry."

"I mean," Tonks said, amused, "I can do this." Tonks winked and then twitched her nose. Before my eyes, it grew longer and thinner.

Ron almost spat out his pumpkin juice on me.

Tonks laughed. "Oh, believe me, when you start doing human transfiguration, you'll get to do this," she said. "When I was still in school, Professor McGonagall was impressed with my abilities but I still had to learn the manual spell work." Tonks looked slightly annoyed. "Besides, I didn't need spell work in auror training. I could morph in the blink of an eye." She batted her eyes, turning the brown to blue.

Tonks looked so different now with the long nose, blue eyes and long curly purple hair. I had to bite my lip so I wouldn't laugh. The hair wasn't ridiculous (I'd seen weirder from the twins' experiments) but the nose was so comical that to look at it and not laugh was seemed like an impossibility.

"Tonks," Mad-Eye barked from the other end of the table. "Quit messing around!"

Tonks rolled her eyes. "It's not bothering anyone," she said, not loud enough for Mad-Eye to hear. Slowly, her nose shrank back into its old form and her eyes returned to brown. Her hair slowly shot back up into her skull so it was short and spiky, but she left it purple.

"So, how are you two liking your stay at here at Grimmauld Place?" Tonks asked me and Ron.

Ron shrugged. "It's got nothing on the Burrow," he said, drinking some of his pumpkin juice.

"I suppose it's alright when the furniture isn't attacking and Kreacher isn't still the trash," I said, nudging around the peas on my plate. "It's just so gloomy here. The sky's always gray in the daytime. Sunshine comes every once in a while. "I don't like I can live in London after this."

"Ah, don't knock it," Tonks said cheerfully. "We get sunny days around London, just not too much around here."

"So you live in London?" Ron asked.

"Yeah," Tonks said. "A flat near the River Thames. It's a messy little place there. I keep forgetting to clean."

"It will be if Mum gets there," Ron muttered into his potatoes. Tonks and I laughed.

"My mother's the witch of cleanliness," Tonks said, finishing off the last of her dinner. "Every time she visits, the place is unrecognizable by the time she's gone."

"Ten galleons that's Ron's life when he moves out of the Burrow," I said teasingly.

Tonks chuckled as Ron turned red. "That's not funny," he said, swiping my uneaten piece of chicken off my plate.

"Oi!"

After dinner, Tonks stayed behind to help clean up. At first, all was fine; that was until Tonks decided to carry the china to the sink and tripped over—well, I'm not sure what she tripped over, but she ended up knocking Lupin into the soup bowl, breaking three of the cups and two plates and somehow sent the cutlery flying into the cupboard doors, and spilled a bottle of pumpkin juice all over the floor when she tried to clean up the mess. It was a sight to see the twins scramble to stay upright as they flailed around on the slippery floor.

"I'm sorry!" she said, pink-faced, as Sirius helped a soup-covered Lupin to his feet. "I didn't mean—"

"It's alright," Lupin said, wiping carrot bits off of his nose. "No harm done."

Tonks was now completely red-faced and red-haired.

Mum had the mess cleaned up with a wave of her wand and sent us all up to bed. I wanted to stay down and talk more with Tonks but Mum wouldn't have it ("I need you lot up early," was her excuse). I yawned as I got ready for bed, throwing myself down on the bed once I was dressed, and stared out of the window into the night.

For once, the sky was clear enough for me to see the stars. There was something about being in this part of inner London that spoiled my view of the sky above. In the daytime, gray clouds swirled across the sky, hiding away the bright blue sky that I was used to seeing back home, and at night, I could hardly see the moon, much less the stars. Whether it was day or night, everything around me was tinted black and white. The gloomy in the air seemed to sap away the color in my clothes, and the people who came in and out. Even my hair seemed to pale to brown.

I drew my eyes away from the window and curled up under my covers. Grimmauld Place was definitely grim. Were all Slytherin-oriented households like this? I couldn't imagine growing up in a place like this. Sometimes I wondered what the schedule would be…

Maybe the Banshee shrieked to wake them up in the morning and Kreacher grumbled while making breakfast? No. The place must have been cleaner than the way it is now. And maybe Kreacher was the one to wake everyone up in the morning. I wondered what that would be like… I hope he didn't stick his face near anyone and stare at them creepily.

_Oh great_, I thought, _now I might not be able to sleep_.

I turned my head towards the door, where a thin streak of light peeked out at me from under the door. The light flickered as people walked past. I don't know how long I stared, but eventually the light went out and the shuffling noise of passing feet retired for the night. Sharp shadows were illuminated by the light from the street outside, followed by the occasion sound of a passing car. It was difficult to fall asleep in this place. I couldn't wait until the summer was over so I could go back to Hogwarts, since I couldn't go back home. I might sleep easier there than here.

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><p>I wasn't sure when I had finally fallen asleep, but I wished I hadn't.<p>

_I was in the Chamber of Secrets again, staring up at the basilisk with its eyes gouged out. The floor was wet with carrot soup instead of sewer water and Celestina Warbeck's '__**Beat Back Those Bludgers, Boys, and Chuck That Quaffle Here**__' for Puddlemere United's anthem echoed off the walls, which was rather odd as I had only heard it once from the twins. The basilisk hissed and me and in a swift motion, it slithered around me, closing me into a circle, and tightened around me, squeezing me to death. Right before I fell unconscious, I saw the bloody diary lying in the soup at a far distance, and to my horror, it was draining away the blood of all the members of my family, sapping away their lives until they were feeble and gray._

_And dead._

"Ginny!" I heard someone say. "Ginny, wake up!"

I snapped out of my dream as someone shook my arm. I rolled over and was immediately welcomed by a bright room and a white sky outside my window. '_Where am I_?' I thought for a second, too disoriented to remember what was going on.

"There was a basilisk," I muttered, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. "It was—it was…"

"Ginny, you were dreaming. There's no basilisk here. Well, as least I hope not. Ron said Grimmauld Place is filled with atrocious souvenirs from Sirius's parents."

I blinked. My blurry eyes began to focus and they fell on a familiar bushy-haired girl sitting at the edge of my bed.

"Hermione?" I asked hoarsely.

"Dumbledore came to pick me up early," she said. "He's settled everything with my parents, so for the rest of the summer I'll be at Grimmauld Place." Hermione smiled. "I'll be staying in this room with you. I'm sure we'll have loads to go over."

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><p><strong>When was the last day I wrote for this story? Oh, that's right. It was the 9<strong>**th**** June, 2012. It's been over a year. I feel like I've forgotten about this story completely. I'm terribly sorry for being so late but I've been a bit stuck with it. I could never come up with a good idea for this chapter, so I'm sorry it's so bloody boring. I hope the next one will come out a whole lot better than it. I feel really ashamed for almost abandoning it completely.**

**~ArtemisIsis13**


	8. Stress and Prejudice

**Disclaimer: I own nothing from Harry Potter.**

**Song of the Chapter: The Birthday Massacre – Pins and Needles**

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><p><strong>Chapter Seven<strong>

**Stress and Prejudice**

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><p>I followed Hermione downstairs once I'd changed out of my nightie. Just by observing her, I knew that she was uncomfortable with the gloomy and obviously disturbing décor of Grimmauld Place, with the dark walls, shadowy corners, and most of all, the elf heads stuck on the wall, with their gaping mouths and shallow cheeks. As soon as we passed it, I could practically <em>feel<em> the heat of her rage radiating across the room. She bit into her lip with such intensity that I thought it would bleed. I admired her self-control against spitting out oaths at the situation. It must have fueled her reasoning in helping the house elves.

"How can anyone live with those on there?" she whispered bitterly once we had passed it. "What are they doing there?"

"It's a Black family tradition," I whispered back as we reached the final staircase. "Sirius tried to remove them, but that house elf running around sealed them on permanently. He's been causing quite a few problems around here."

Hermione shot me a startled look. "There's another house elf here?" she asked, and she didn't bother to keep her voice down. Panicking, I slapped my hand over her mouth and turned towards the portrait of the Banshee, expecting the blinds to whip open and her voice to shriek until they vibrated my bones, but thankfully, there was no response. I exhaled with relieve and turned back to Hermione, whose confused expression morphed into embarrassment. Someone must have already explained what went on with that portrait.

"Sorry," she whispered, but her embarrassment quickly faded. "But there's a house elf here?"

I nodded my head. "Those heads up there are his ancestors, and he's proud that their up there," I explained. Her eyes hardened with disbelief. "I kid you not. I think he views them as trophies of honor or something of the sort. His name is Kreacher. He's been—well, he's been interfering around here. We've been trying to clean out this house of its dark objects and he continues to bring them back. He put the elf heads back up an hour after Sirius took them down. He can't get them off now."

"But why would do that?" she pressed.

"He's deranged." She glared at me. "Again, I'm not kidding. He's not like the elves at Hogwarts."

I quietly walked away and made sure not to make a single sound as I passed that portrait, and Hermione followed in equal silence. Once we were out of the hallway and in the kitchen, we were finally able to talk in our normal tones. Mum was always there cooking breakfast, and my brothers were already seated at the table, practically inhaling the toast, bacon, sausages, and porridge. Remus Lupin also sat at the table, reading the _Prophet_ sipping on a mug of coffee.

"Morning," I greeted them, plopping myself down next to Ron, who not even bothered to look up. I glanced at Hermione, who had seated herself on my other side, and she shook her head as she glanced at him, but turning to look at the twins, both of whom had a devilish look on their faces.

"So, Ron," Fred said before Hermione could say anything. "Did you send a letter to Hermione today?"

Ron looked up from his plate of sausage and toast, his ears turning red, and said, "None of your business."

"Ron, your manners," Mum admonished in a light voice.

"Sorry," he mumbled, and his red were maroon, his least favorite color.

"But really, Ronniekins, when was the last time you sent at owl to Hermione's?" George asked innocently. Hermione shook her head fondly as Ron's ear darkened. "Yesterday you were complaining that she wasn't around to help you with your homework, and before that—"

"I was not!" Ron protested.

I giggled. "Ron, if your ears were any redder, I would think you missed Hermione," I teased, and I noticed that a faint pink flush flooded Hermione's cheeks.

Ron turned to glare at me, his mouth open for a snappy retort, when he caught the image of Hermione seated next to me, too stubborn to smile, and this time his entire face went scarlet. The twin burst into laughter at the sight and Ron glowered at all of us.

"I hate you all," he said sullenly, and even Lupin chuckled at the head of the table.

"If it reassures you, I missed you as well, Ron," Hermione said sweetly. I was surprised that Ron didn't combust on the spot. "And I miss Harry, Ginny, surprisingly the twins—" Fred and George made a sound that I think indicated offense, by with their mouths full of food, it was hard to tell. "—and Hogwarts. Shall I continue?"

Mum smiled as she placed more toast and scrambled eggs on the table. "Would you like anything, Hermione?"

"Oh, no thank you, Mrs. Weasley. I already had breakfast before I left," she said.

"How'd you get here?" Ron asked.

"Tonks and I went to collect her this morning," Lupin said as he dropped the newspaper on the table next to his coffee. "We stayed for morning tea. They're pleasant people."

Hermione smiled, both pleased and sympathetically. "How is she?" she asked. "I mean Tonks. No bruising?"

"None whatsoever," Lupin assured her.

Mum was surprised. "What happened this time?" she asked as she stirred something in a pot. She went to the cupboard—leaving the pot to stir itself while she searched—and turned a worried eye to Lupin.

"She tripped over Crookshanks and crashed into our piano," Hermione said, tracing invisible lines on the table. "She was bleeding rather badly out of her nose and she twisted her wrist."

I sighed. When _wasn't_ Tonks tripping over something? No one else seemed surprised; Tonks always seemed to injure herself somehow, and I admired her ability to jump back from it. The fact that she wasn't here said that she was perfectly fine and at work; after all, I doubted that Lupin would have let her out of his sight otherwise.

"Poor dear," Mum said with a shake of her head. "I heard about her from Charlie when he was at Hogwarts. He said she found herself in the hospital wing more than anyone else in their year."

"Oh, _that's_ who he was talking about," George joked. "I thought he was talking about a girl he had a crush on."

I rolled my eyes and tucked into my toast and eggs.

"So, were is Sirius?" Hermione asked curiously, pouring herself a glass of orange juice. "I thought he would be down here?"

"He's feeding Buckbeak upstairs," Ron told her.

Hermione bit her lip. "And Kreacher? Where is he?"

As if on cue, my brothers groaned exasperatedly at the mention of the house elf's name. Yesterday, Kreacher had undone three hours of their hard work cleaning out two of the bedrooms upstairs for order members. I'd never seen the twins so angry in my life, and I had been there when Mum had disposed of all their Weasley's Wizard Wheezes products.

"Do not talk to me about that—_creature_," George said, dropping his half-eaten toast on his plate before pushing it away.

Fred nodded sullenly. "That thing was spawned out of You-Know-Who's rear—"

"Fred!" Mum shouted, almost knocking the pan into the ground as George and Ron chuckled into their hands.

A loud bark of laughter shot out from the doorway and we all caught sight of Sirius Black leaning against the doorframe, shaking with laughter to the point where his face turned red with hilarity.

"Sirius," Lupin said disapprovingly.

Sirius shook his head fondly. "Ah, well," he chuckled. "Remus, I need your help upstairs. One of the wardrobes tried to strangle me. And I'd take care of it myself, but it took my wand." The humor on Sirius's face dimmed.

Lupin sighed. "The _wardrobe_ took your wand and tried to—" I cut himself and rubbed the bridge between his eyes. "Never mind. I don't want to know."

My brothers chuckled. As Lupin passed Sirius to the hallway, Sirius added, "Well, it was more like what was _inside_ the wardrobe that tried to strangle me than the _actual_ wardrobe itself…"

The two of them disappeared out of the doorway.

Hermione shook her head and turned back to the rest of us. "Where's Kreacher? I'd like to meet him."

The entire room sobered up.

Mum heaved a sigh and turned off the stove. "Hermione, dear, that may not be the wisest idea," she said reasonably. "Kreacher is rather—unreceptive to new guests—"

"I think what Mum is trying to say is that Kreacher will use Slytherin-prejudiced and completely soulless profanities if he sees you," George said bluntly.

"Not to mention that he lurks in the corner like a creepy stalker and talks to himself all the time," Fred added. "Once I woke up and he was standing over me, just staring. He didn't even blink."

I bit my lip, trying not to smile at the mocking tone in their voices. I couldn't tell if Fred was being serious or not, seeing as he never mentioned his little story before, and I wondered if he was just saying it out of his dislike of Kreacher in general.

"That's not fair," Hermione protested. "I don't want you to put words in my mouth. I'm sure I can make a proper estimation on my own. Besides, I'm sure he couldn't be that bad."

Ron stood up. "Well, then, maybe you should meet him," he said. "He's not like the other house elves you've met, Hermione."

Hermione stood up and examined him with narrowed eyes. "You're not the judge," she said. "And, if I'm supposed to stay here for the rest of the summer, I'm going to meet him eventually. It might as well be now."

**~o~**

There was honestly no arguing with her. I didn't even bother to join in—I was too busy eating to talk—while Ron and Hermione bantered, and they only stopped when Mum asked them to. How did Harry put up with that all the time, the arguments that went on between the two of them? I knew that he argued with them as well, even taking sides, but not as much as they did with one another.

I knew when my brother was jealous, whether it was from our siblings or from other people. When Hermione went to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum, I knew he was jealous of that too. He adored Krum as any crazed fan would, and then he loathed him with every fiber in his body because he took interest in Hermione. I tried to talk to Hermione about it, but she would only turn pink and change the subject, so I talked to Tacita and Narelle about it instead. Looking at the both of them now, I realized that I would have to put up with their arguments all summer, and unlike our time at Hogwarts, I didn't have the opportunity to avoid them.

I helped Mum clean up the kitchen as Hermione and Ron left to find Kreacher, and the twins disapparated to another part of the house, but not before levitating their dirty dishes to the sink. Once I was done and hurried off to find Ron and Hermione, tiptoeing passed the Banshee portrait, and skipping steps to the second floor. I checked the rooms, only to find them empty, and once I was on the next floor, I could hear their voices from upstairs.

Ron and Hermione were standing in the hallways, arguing in nearly hushed voices, but Ron wasn't exactly good at keeping his voice down. Out of curiosity, I left myself out of sight, but I leaned forward so that I could hear them clearer. They didn't notice my presence at all, which made it all easier.

"…not fair to him," Hermione said disapprovingly. "He doesn't know anything about this, does he?"

"Dumbledore doesn't want us to tell him anything," Ron said. "It's not like I agree with him, Hermione. The Order doesn't tell me anything anyway. The twins are trying to find a way around it."

"That's not fair," Hermione said. "This concerns Harry and you know it! I can't lie to him in a letter."

"We're not lying to him. We can't tell him information we don't know. Besides, Dad says any information in a letter can in intercepted. I think he takes the _Prophet_, too, Hermione. He would know what everyone's saying by now."

"All the more reason to say something to him! Ron, Harry could be going through post-traumatic stress disorder after what happened Cedric. If he's reading the Prophet and he knows what they're saying about him, he's going to be angry, and reckless, and he'd going to do something he'll regret!"

"Harry wouldn't do that."

"Ron, when he thought Sirius Black killed his parents, he wanted to kill him. When Hagrid went to Azkaban, Harry was willing to risk his life in the Forbidden Forest just to find out the truth. There was the troll in the bathroom, Quirrell and the stone, Ginny and the basilisk—" I tried not to flinch at the reminder. "He thinks more with his heart than his head! When he's frustrated, he lashes out."

"The Order keeps an eye on him. He hasn't been threatened or harmed. He isn't lashing out at anyone. His sentries say he's fine."

"Sentries? I'm sure he'll be pleased when he finds out about that."

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?

"Ron, Harry needs support. He saw someone die. I've read his letters. He's frustrated."

"You can tell from a letter?"

"You can't?"

"I'm sorry I'm not good at reading between the lines!"

Hermione groaned and turned away from him. "How is keeping him ignorant going to help?"

"I don't know," Ron said. "Putting anything in letters is dangerous, and you know what."

"I'm not just talking about the Order, Ron," Hermione said quietly. "Harry's being distant with us, and we're encouraging it. Why is the Order letting him stay with the Dursleys if he's better off here, where he can be safe? Where we can talk to him? It's better to talk than to send letters."

"They're bringing him here eventually," Ron said, sounding unsure. "But Dumbledore said that having some space would be good for him."

"And having his friends to support him would be better," Hermione argued. "The last time I saw him, he was different. Whatever You-Know-Who did to him, it stressed him, and it still is. I've researched it."

"Well, just be sure to phrase anything carefully," Ron said glumly. "Our letters are checked before we send them out so that we don't spill anything."

There was a pause for silence. "They monitor our letters?" Hermione repeated.

"Yeah. Bill looks through them. It's better than Mum doing it."

I couldn't help but agree to that, though I knew that there were certain elements in my letters that I didn't want any member of my family knowing. I was thankful that Bill never said anything about what I wrote, and I made sure not to write anything too embarrassing, unless I wanted him to feel embarrassed.

I quietly tiptoed back down the stairs, hopeful that neither Hermione nor Ron noticed my eavesdropping as I returned to the first floor. So Harry knew nothing about this? I wasn't sure if I was surprised or not. After all, I had little contact with him and Ron didn't mention anything too concerning. Why would Dumbledore want to keep Harry out of the Order, other than the fact that he was underage? What went on with You-Know-Who concerned Harry, and it also concerned everyone else, even those too blind to see it.

After all, we were teenagers, not little children. I knew I wasn't up for the missions the Order went on, but I at least deserved to know what was going on around me, other than the small snippets passed along the dinner table.

**~o~**

I went back up to find Ron and Hermione after I was sure they had stopped arguing, though I questioned my own calculated guess. I found them on the fourth floor, standing beside a tapestry. There was something huddled in the corner, partially hidden in the shadows near the tapestry, and from the low, angry mumbles I heard from it, there was only one thing it could be.

Kreacher.

"…you don't have to be frightened," Hermione said kindly, misinterpreting Kreacher's negative anti-social behavior for shyness.

Kreacher turned his stony eyes towards her and hunched his shoulders away from her, as if she were carrying a terminal disease. "The mudblood speaks to Kreacher," he said bitterly, shying further away from her. "A mudblood in the house of Black. Oh, how, Kreacher's sweet mistress would weep…"

"Stop calling her that!" Ron snapped angrily at Kreacher. His hands were balled into fists, and I knew that he was holding himself back.

"Ron, don't yell at him!" Hermione said reproachfully. "I'm sure—"

"—that he doesn't mean it? That he doesn't understand? Are you joking, Hermione?" Ron shot her a disbelieving look, and it was echoed with my own incredulity. Was she trying to see the good in that house elf or was she just that stubborn?

"I doubt treating him badly will actually do any of us any good," Hermione said, folding her arms. "From what you told me, Kreacher has been alone in this house for a long time. He just needs to reacquaint himself with new people."

"Hermione, he wasn't just alone. He was being ordered around by that mad portrait of Sirius's mum!" Ron protested, almost waving his arms wilding in the air to make his point. "He doesn't listen to any of us willing! If Sirius hadn't inherited him, Kreacher wouldn't even listen to him."

Hermione's lips turned downwards at the word 'inherited'.

Kreacher shuffled away from him. "The mudblood and bloodtraitor Weasley brat are talking about Kreacher," he muttered. "Kreacher takes offense." He paused. "Kreacher's mistress is calling Kreacher. Kreacher must go to her." And without another word, he disappeared with a loud crack.

Ron pointed his finger towards the spot Kreacher had recently inhabited. "See!" he said. "Hermione, I get that you want to help the elves, but that one is a lost cause!"

"That's not for you to decide," Hermione said patiently. "Kreacher is obviously brainwashed by that portrait. I'm sure that with learning to understand him will help improve his behavior. You can't will him to be good just by ordering him around! He's a person!"

"He's rotten as a Malfoy!" Ron snapped before storming off.

Hermione glared at his retreating figure before catching my eye. The anger slowly simmered down in the two brown orbs as she turned back toward the spot where Kreacher had disappeared.

"I suppose you agree with him," she said.

I shrugged. "Kreacher is—well, he's a pain, I'll admit that. Most of the time, I'm glad when he's not around."

"I know what you must think," she said, forcing a small smile on her face. "And I'm not oblivious. Kreacher was rude and he doesn't like us, but it's obvious that he only knows how to treat us according to how the Black family raised him. Maybe if we can show him that he doesn't need to be that way, then maybe he'll be nicer to us."

"Wishful thinking," I said as we started our way back downstairs.

"Well, call it what you want, but I'm not giving up on him," Hermione said. "All house elves have feelings, intelligence, and deserve better treatment that what wizards and witches give to them. It's the only way that we'll maintain proper communication skills. And I'm going to prove it."

With that, she walked down the stairs, leaving me to catch up with her. I hated being smallest one around here. I moved relatively slower than everyone else. As we returned to our room, I debated on whether Hermione would be successful on her plan about Kreacher, and if he could really get better.

* * *

><p><strong>I've missed Hermione. I'm glad that I finally brought her into the story. I was running out of ideas for the in between, and soon Harry will join as well. The summer won't last forever and it's off to Hogwarts we go.<strong>

**~ArtemisIsis13**


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